Taking precautionary measures in light of the global spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), ExxonMobil has suspended construction of its local headquarters at Ogle, East Coast Demerara for now.
“We have instituted social distancing protocols and have temporarily suspended campus construction activities,” Public and Government Affairs Advisor Janelle Persaud told Stabroek News yesterday, when contacted.
Through a sublease arrangement, on 10 acres of land leased to Ogle Airport Inc (OAI) by the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission, ExxonMobil plans to construct its state-of-the art corporate headquarters.
Last April, joint venture NABI/KCL Oilfield Construction Services Guyana, in a press release, announced that it had been awarded the contract for the Ogle project.
It said that the state-of-the-art campus will be constructed on a greenfield 15-acre site comprising two buildings, associated infrastructure and will have a net zero energy footprint. The plans also include the construction of a roadway as the designated site had no road access.
A loam roadway to the site has since been constructed.
Security personnel at the location have been very hostile to this media house and when this newspaper visited the location yesterday, only two security personnel were seen, one of who berated the reporters.
A number of vehicles and machinery were parked.
But while Exxon has stopped construction, nearby at the BK International hangar and office, construction works were forging ahead yesterday.
The confirmation of five cases of COVID-19 here has caused a sharp decline in business, compounding the slowdown that began after the March 2 elections.
As a result, the hospitality industry is uneasy as some operators are grappling with how they will be able to stay afloat while acting in the best interest of their staffers.
Thousands of jobs are said to be on the line, not only from hotels, resorts, restaurants, cafes, and bars, but also from the related aviation and transportation sectors, should the situation take a turn for the worse.
The two-week closure of Guyana’s two main airports to international passenger traffic as part of the response to try to halt the spread of COVID-19 has resulted in the Roraima Group reducing staff as they anticipate a steep dip in income.
Authorities on Tuesday announced that the two major airports would be closed to incoming international flights from midnight Wednesday night for two weeks.
For Roraima Airways, the ground handler for American Airlines and Eastern Airlines and which also operates domestic and charter services out of the Eugene F Correia International Airport at Ogle, a three-month downsizing of staff is imminent.
