Two weeks ahead of yet another deadline, the latest instalment of works on the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) have entered the “testing phase,” Ministry of Public Works Project Engineer, Carissa Gooding disclosed during a tour of the facility on Friday.
The airport expansion project has been in play since 2013 and missed many deadlines under three governments.
Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill who was on the tour said that the 71 critical items and the master tracking list with over 1,000 items to ensure that the airport’s functionality is at 100% are all on schedule.
“At December 31st we can sign off that it is completed…” Edghill stated.
“We have completed all those items and we have started to do our testing and commissioning of those items. What we have now, is remedial works being done to some of the problematic areas we have… We are in the defects and liability period,” Gooding explained to members of the media in the presence of Edghill, Chinese Ambassador to Guyana Guo Haiyan, and officials from China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC).
During a tour of the facility, Edghill disclosed that while they have completed works from the original work plan, an extension has been given to Chinese contractor CHEC for the completion of works to the superstructure, the glass curtain wall and the two additional air bridges.
“There is no extension. We held them to the fire and they have produced… All the works that were in the contract that we inherited when we came into government last year, as of December 31 this year will be fully completed… What you are seeing here now are the works we negotiated with China Harbour that they are doing at their own expense because of the amended contract that we expressed dissatisfaction with…”, Edghill clarified.
Speaking to the media during the tour, the Minister disclosed that workers were casting the last beam for the superstructure which will house approximately 20 concession stands. He pointed out that the glass curtain wall will be completed shortly as its installation has already begun and another shipment of glass is expected to arrive next week. This, he said, will advance the project further.
It was pointed out too that the foundation and structure to accommodate the two additional boarding bridges catering to Code D&E aircraft are already in place.
Additionally, he stressed that while some US$9 million was budgeted for the extended project, the cost has now moved to approximately US$15 million. The entire sum he was quick to clarify, will be covered by CHEC. This newspaper understands that the increased cost of the project is as a result of the global hike in prices for infrastructural commodities due to the COVID-19 pandemic and shipping crisis.
Meanwhile, CHEC Country Manager Sammy Chan on Friday said that his company is committed to delivering an airport of high quality before the timeline set. He stated that at present they are working to deliver “a perfect project” to the Government of Guyana.
Ambassador Haiyan stated that with CHEC being a world renowned international company, she is confident that despite delays which she said were beyond their control, they will deliver a functioning and convenient airport to travellers.
Subsequent to taking office, President Irfaan Ali in September during a familiarisation visit to the project expressed his dissatisfaction at the state of the project. He told CHEC that they were responsible for the failure to deliver a project of high quality and being able to complete it in a timely fashion.
By December last year, the PPP/C government and CHEC announced that they had reached an agreement on the CJIA expansion project for additional works.
After being written to by Attorney General Anil Nandlall a year ago informing that government would not accept shoddy work or less than what it had originally agreed for, the two sides came to an agreement and CHEC said that it would stand the costs to complete those works.
The deal appeared to be a significant win for the government, which had warned of legal action against CHEC if the defects highlighted were not remedied by December 31 last year.
Some 71 critical issues affecting the airport’s functionality had been listed and made known to the company in order that they be addressed. Both sides agreed that CHEC would be given up to March 31 of this year to complete those works. Of the 71 issues, Edghill informed on Friday that 69 have been completed.
The issues included: fixing of a cracked section of the runway skirt; sealing the floor tiles in the departure area; getting the current four air bridges fully functional or replaced; replacing specified lighting fixtures; fixing doors and modifying others to specific fire codes; fixing the ceiling; fixing the toilets; separating the generator room; and repairing the system to allow for the sewage water to be separated. “The 71 issues were a major concern to President Ali,” Edghill stressed back then.
“I am holding everyone responsible; the contractor, the consultant, the project management team… this is not acceptable for the Guyanese people. In this current position it is very clear from all that I have seen and heard, and from all the questions asked, it is very clear that something is horribly wrong. The right decision at this moment is that we cannot accept this,” Ali was quoted as saying.
CHEC in response to President Ali’s statements said that it had “paid careful attention to those statements and, on September 29th and 30th, immediately dispatched its Vice President Liu from Beijing and the President of its Americas Division Dr Zhimin Hu. Since then, CHEC has provided to the Government of Guyana through the Ministers of Public Works and the Office of the President comprehensive updates on the Project, including a revised schedule of works and other outstanding matters as per the present existing contract.”
When all works are done, government and CHEC said that there will be an extension of the airport’s boarding corridor in order to accommodate two more passenger boarding bridges, providing the airport with a total of six boarding bridges capable of servicing aircraft such as the Boeing 777, Dreamliner, the Airbus, and similar trans-Atlantic aircraft.
The terminal building is being extended to provide accommodation for additional commercial space such as food courts and duty-free shops. The extended building will feature a modern airport façade covering the full length of the Departure Terminal.
The controversy-ridden project began under the PPP/C in 2013 after a secret deal in 2011 in Jamaica and has now straddled three governments, including the former APNU+AFC administration’s term in office from 2015 to 2020.
