CJIA confirms December 2018 completion – CEO
DPI, Guyana, Thursday, December 28, 2017
The completion of the expansion of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) is now scheduled for December 2018. According to Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the CJIA, Ramesh Ghir, the entire project, inclusive of rehabilitation and renovation of existing structures, is scheduled for December 2018 completion.
Ramesh Ghir, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA).
The CEO was presenting an update on the project, at the Ministry of Public Infrastructure’s year-end press conference, today.
The project encompasses and caters for a new Arrivals terminal building, upgrades to the existing terminal building, a remote apron, extensions to the north-eastern and south-western runways, a diesel generator room and a fire pump station.
“The north-eastern extension of the runway is going to be completed by July 2018, the south-western extension, the first 500 meters of the pavement will be done by April 2018 and then the last 190 meters is going to go until December 2018,” Ghir stated.
He added that “The taxi-ways and apron will all be completed by March, the new arrival terminal by June of 2018, of course, the boarding bridge will be finished before that and the existing terminal building is going to go until December 2018.”
Meanwhile, these facilities will house baggage carousels and additional duty-free shops in the terminals along with escalators. Upon completion, the CJIA is expected to be a modern state of the art port facility, encouraging the smooth flow of services to those arriving into or departing Guyana by air.
Addressing the matter of financing for the project, Ghir said, “to date, US$111M was paid out, $6.4M is Government of Guyana Payment, $105M is from EXIM bank and that really accounts for 81 percent of the project.”
Initially, the project had been slated for a September 2015 completion following the signing of the contract in November 2011, with a commencement date of January 2013.
The China Harbour Engineering Company Limited is the contracted agency executing the project.
According to Ghir, persons who traversed through the airport have responded positively to the expansion, despite some of the “hiccups” and “inconveniences” that may be encountered from time to time.
By: Delicia Haynes
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