Two Local Contractors to help ‘Fip’ finish US$15.4M Road
January 8, 2012 | By KNews | Filed Under News
…Fip Motilall failed to properly manage project
By Gary Eleazar
The Guyana Government has introduced Makeswar ‘Fip’ Motilall and Synergy Holdings Inc. to two local contractors who are to assist with the completion of the Amaila Falls Hydroelectric plant’s ‘access road’ project.
This was confirmed by a senior Government official who said that the parties are close to finalising the agreements and the administration is confident that the subcontracting out of the road will allow for meeting the new deadline set for the end of the first quarter of this year.
The project is about 40 per cent complete.
Motilall’s supervision of the project has been such a dismal failure that the Consultant had to step in to assist with the management of the project.
The multi-million project being undertaken is on six different discreet locations requiring individual teams and fleets of equipment to carry out the task at hand. This is another area where the Contractor, ‘Fip’ Motilall, of Synergy Holdings has failed, in the process incurring the delays.
With the two contactors on board, Motilall is expected to make the revised deadline having already missed three.
Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr Roger Luncheon, in December had told media operatives that the new completion date for the road project is now March or April in 2012.
He said that it was agreed to by Motilall, the consultants and the Government of Guyana that sections of the road will have to be sub-contracted out to other companies to speed up the works.
As it relates to the percentage of the US$15.4M paid over to Synergy Holdings Inc for works already completed, the official was unable to say but promised to make that information available.
Dr Luncheon was also unable at the time to say how much of the road has been completed.
Motilall had earlier this year promised to take media operatives to the interior to view the progress of the road but that never materialized.
Dr Luncheon had himself conceded that the road project is hopelessly behind schedule and the suggestion was there for him to contract out the components ever since then.
Dr Luncheon had even suggested that Motilall should be very worried because the design of the contract stipulates stringent penalties.
“The penalties are quite significant and will be enforced for not meeting the drop dead date.”
Senior Engineer at the Ministry of Public Works, Walter Willis, at that time had told this newspaper that there were no delays as such but rather lost days which had to be given back to the contractor.
Willis said the first notice to proceed was given in October 5, for some sections of the road. On January 11 the next notice to proceed was issued and this section entailed virgin forest.
The breakdown of the project awarded to Synergy Holdings Inc states that the upgrade of 89km of road will cost US$3.9M; the 110km of virgin roadway, US$7M, the two pontoon crossings or a bridge will be US$1.5M and ‘T’ line clearing is said to be US$3M.
Hand in Hand Group of Companies is the company that has backed Synergy Holdings Inc. with the US$3M mobilization and security bonds which were a prerequisite to securing the recently awarded Amaila Falls Road contract.
The road that Synergy Holdings is building is to pave the way for the Amaila Falls Hydro Electric Project which is described as just part of a larger effort to revolutionise Guyana’s power generation infrastructure.
The storage dam site would be located near the top of Amaila Falls and would impound the waters of both the Kuribrong and Amaila Rivers.
The Amaila site is located on the Kuribrong River, a tributary of the Potaro River in West Central Guyana. The nearest point of access is the airstrip at Kaieteur Falls on the Potaro River, approximately 15 miles to the south.
An overland trail exists from Kaieteur to Amaila. Access is also provided overland by an all-weather road through Tumatumari on the Potaro River and on to Mahdia and Kangaruma.
River access along the Potaro-Kuribrong Rivers to the foot of Amaila Falls involves several portages around rapids and waterfalls.
The road from Tumatumari was recently extended to Mahdia/Kangaruma that brings the project closer to the site but approximately 30 miles of additional roads will need to be built to the top of Amaila Falls.
January 8, 2012 | By KNews | Filed Under News
…Fip Motilall failed to properly manage project
By Gary Eleazar
The Guyana Government has introduced Makeswar ‘Fip’ Motilall and Synergy Holdings Inc. to two local contractors who are to assist with the completion of the Amaila Falls Hydroelectric plant’s ‘access road’ project.
This was confirmed by a senior Government official who said that the parties are close to finalising the agreements and the administration is confident that the subcontracting out of the road will allow for meeting the new deadline set for the end of the first quarter of this year.
The project is about 40 per cent complete.
Motilall’s supervision of the project has been such a dismal failure that the Consultant had to step in to assist with the management of the project.
The multi-million project being undertaken is on six different discreet locations requiring individual teams and fleets of equipment to carry out the task at hand. This is another area where the Contractor, ‘Fip’ Motilall, of Synergy Holdings has failed, in the process incurring the delays.
With the two contactors on board, Motilall is expected to make the revised deadline having already missed three.
Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr Roger Luncheon, in December had told media operatives that the new completion date for the road project is now March or April in 2012.
He said that it was agreed to by Motilall, the consultants and the Government of Guyana that sections of the road will have to be sub-contracted out to other companies to speed up the works.
As it relates to the percentage of the US$15.4M paid over to Synergy Holdings Inc for works already completed, the official was unable to say but promised to make that information available.
Dr Luncheon was also unable at the time to say how much of the road has been completed.
Motilall had earlier this year promised to take media operatives to the interior to view the progress of the road but that never materialized.
Dr Luncheon had himself conceded that the road project is hopelessly behind schedule and the suggestion was there for him to contract out the components ever since then.
Dr Luncheon had even suggested that Motilall should be very worried because the design of the contract stipulates stringent penalties.
“The penalties are quite significant and will be enforced for not meeting the drop dead date.”
Senior Engineer at the Ministry of Public Works, Walter Willis, at that time had told this newspaper that there were no delays as such but rather lost days which had to be given back to the contractor.
Willis said the first notice to proceed was given in October 5, for some sections of the road. On January 11 the next notice to proceed was issued and this section entailed virgin forest.
The breakdown of the project awarded to Synergy Holdings Inc states that the upgrade of 89km of road will cost US$3.9M; the 110km of virgin roadway, US$7M, the two pontoon crossings or a bridge will be US$1.5M and ‘T’ line clearing is said to be US$3M.
Hand in Hand Group of Companies is the company that has backed Synergy Holdings Inc. with the US$3M mobilization and security bonds which were a prerequisite to securing the recently awarded Amaila Falls Road contract.
The road that Synergy Holdings is building is to pave the way for the Amaila Falls Hydro Electric Project which is described as just part of a larger effort to revolutionise Guyana’s power generation infrastructure.
The storage dam site would be located near the top of Amaila Falls and would impound the waters of both the Kuribrong and Amaila Rivers.
The Amaila site is located on the Kuribrong River, a tributary of the Potaro River in West Central Guyana. The nearest point of access is the airstrip at Kaieteur Falls on the Potaro River, approximately 15 miles to the south.
An overland trail exists from Kaieteur to Amaila. Access is also provided overland by an all-weather road through Tumatumari on the Potaro River and on to Mahdia and Kangaruma.
River access along the Potaro-Kuribrong Rivers to the foot of Amaila Falls involves several portages around rapids and waterfalls.
The road from Tumatumari was recently extended to Mahdia/Kangaruma that brings the project closer to the site but approximately 30 miles of additional roads will need to be built to the top of Amaila Falls.