The sod turning ceremony for the long-awaited and controversial Marriott Guyana Georgetown hotel was held today in Kingston and it was disclosed that a Chinese company will be constructing the US$51M edifice.
The revelation that China’s Shanghai Construction Group will be undertaking the building of the project came two days after the disclosure of the secret signing of a deal in Jamaica for another Chinese company to undertake the construction of a new terminal at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Timehri and the expansion of its runway.
It is yet unclear how the US$51M financing of the venture will be achieved. The Government Information Agency quoted the Head of the Privatisation Unit Winston Brassington as saying that funding will be in the form of debt and equity and that the government will provide a “minority” share of the funding. The government has struggled to find financing for this project which has been on the agenda for many years. The revelation earlier this year that some of the money would be provided by the state has been heavily criticized as members of the public have argued that the investor should be bearing the full cost of construction.
