Contractor Leguan Stelling has officially put the boot
Stelling Leguan which has been undergoing repairs for the past two years
Kaieteur News – The contractor for the $ 413M Stelling Leguan Rehabilitation Project has been officially fired.
According to information obtained from the Ministry of Legal Affairs, the contractor, Satrohan Maraj, of Maraj Contracting Services, was officially notified of the termination of his contract on February 22.
In a letter, Minister for Legal Affairs and Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC, outlined that the Government of Guyana, through the Department of Transport and Harbors (T&HD), had entered into a written agreement with the company on September 20, 2018, for the rehabilitation. of Leguan Ferry Stelling in accordance with the terms specified in that contract. The Attorney General (AG) noted that the contract was fulfilled for $ 413,259,260 and was due to be completed on or before June 18, 2019.
Nandlall said, based on the records, that the T&HD had granted several extensions to the contract, despite those extensions, the project has been delayed for about twenty months.
“Therefore, the company has only complied with a very small schedule of works. As a result, your company has committed a fundamental breach of contract terms and as a result; the Government is exercising its rights to terminate the contract immediately, ”the AG added in the letter.
Nandlall further listed the grounds of termination as a breach of the clause for failure to comply with the work schedule and breach of clause 40.2 (G) and the special conditions of the contract for the undue delay in completion of works under the contract.
In addition, the Attorney General stated that the Government will enforce the contract provisions regarding the $ 43,325,926 performance bond; the mobilization bond of $ 81,398,375; and the amount of the ten percent contract as fixed damages and the value of the unfulfilled work.
He further noted that the Government reserves its right to initiate legal action against the company for damages for breach of contract and unjust enrichment.
Last week, the Ministry of Public Works (MoPW) announced that the Minister for Public Works, Juan Edghill, had met the contractor, along with a team from the T&HD.
The MoPW stated in a statement following an 11-hour discussion, guided by a report compiled by the Guyana Audit Office, that the team determined that the contractor was “incapable, unable, and lacking the space to successfully implement this project valued at $ 413,259,260. ”
The statement went on to mention that the contractor had received payments totaling $ 199,435,000, almost 50% of the contract amount, an “unheard scenario,” which he states is outside normal procurement practices and is violation of the Financial Management Accountability Act (FMA).
In addition, it was noted that the contractor, upon receiving the contract for the construction of a stelling, had used a defective bill bill argument and had earned by October 30, 2019, an additional $ 20,650,000 for the supply and delivery of piles for the same Leguan in smell What is also noteworthy is that the contract did not include piles, one of the most important components for building the stelling.
The Auditor General, Deodat Sharma, had informed that at the time of the audit, the contractor was being paid for measured work, but that there was no analysis associated with the payment certificates.
During the meeting, Minister Edghill sought a reminder that, on four occasions, he had engaged with the contractor and the Department for Transport and Harbor on the completion of this project, with no success. Against this background and in accordance with the terms of the contract, the Minister announced that the contract would be terminated immediately.