Gov’t seeking contractor to construct Puruni bridge
The government, through the Ministry of Natural Resources (MoNR) is in search of contractor to construct a bridge for the Puruni river crossing. The Puruni river is a tributary of the Mazaruni river, Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni).
Improving connectivity and increasing productivity in Guyana are two manifesto promises of the PPP/C, and upgrading and transforming the physical infrastructure plays a critical role in fully attaining these goals. Already, the government has made strides in this regard.
The Puruni river flows through an area with rich mineral resources and dense forested vegetation. Mining and forestry activities are concentrated along the river and the Kartabu-Puruni Road. As such, the river and road serve as a means of access to the resources within the area.
The Natural Resources Ministry has since invited Expressions of Interest (EOI) from individuals and/or corporate bodies. The Ministry will consider options under various models including Design-Build (D-B) and Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) or any other suitable model.
The Ministry has required that responses to the EOI should contain adequate information to be used to determine the optimal model to pursue: D-B or BOT, including all variants such as DBFO, DBFM, DBFMO; providing sufficient details to guide the final form of the Design-Build contract associated with the selected model; a conceptual design and preliminary costing; as well as proposals to maximise local content including local firms, suppliers, and labour.
The natural resources ministry stated that the allocation and integration of responsibilities between the government and the contractor include the finalisation of the road alignment on each side of the Puruni river to minimise its impact and achieve an early completion date; the responsibility for the final environmental studies and permitting.
The Kartabo-Puruni Road, leading from the Teperu Crossing at Itaballi at the mouth of Mazaruni River, is intersected by the Puruni River at a point. The road is part of the network which connects to the Linden-Lethem access road.
A pontoon system currently operates at the intersection to facilitate the crossing of the Puruni River and the point of the pontoon crossing. The area on both sides of the river is marked by relatively higher lands, thus implying that the area is prone to flooding when the river inundates and during periods of heavy rainfall.
Notably, funding has already been secured for the Linden to Lethem Road.