Major rehabilitation works are slated for the El Paso access road in Region Eight, according to Minister of Public Infrastructure David Patterson.
“The good news is that the regional engineer just informed me that the tender for that road goes out next week under our maintenance budget,” Patterson told a community meeting at El Paso, in Region Eight, the Department of Public Information (DPI) reported on Friday.
El Paso is situated to the west of Tumatumari Landing. There are approximately 40 households in the village.
The report noted that the tender process for the contract for the maintenance of the five-mile stretch of road is expected to last about three weeks before an award is made.
It added that the road will be extended from the Brian Sucre Junction in Mahdia for three miles and includes another two miles of rehabilitative works from the Micobie junction to El Paso.
The Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) is also partnering with the ministry to carry out the rehabilitation of the road. The maintenance contract is expected to provide better access to several villages in the Potaro-Siparuni Region.
Patterson also engaged the residents on matters relating to electricity and their water woes, the DPI report said. He also spoke of other projects to benefit the residents, including the Tumatumari Hydropower plant.
According to DPI, the Tumatumari Hydropower Station was the first hydropower station to be constructed on the Potaro River. The plant was constructed in 1957 by the British Goldfields Limited and operated until 1959, when mining operations ceased. In 1969, the then government re-commissioned the station where the power was transmitted to serve the Guyana National Service camps at Tumatumari and Konawaruk.
Patterson is reported to have assured residents that the government will be actively looking into revamping the hydro backing energy plant that will see electricity transmission throughout Tumatumari/El Paso and Mahdia.
