Call for tenders this week for new four-lane Demerara Harbour Bridge

President Irfaan Ali on Wednesday announced that the government will this week go to tender as it advances the process towards building a new four-lane, high-span fixed bridge across the Demerara Harbour Bridge.

The construction of the bridge would take two years, the President indicated at a press conference at his official residence, State House, in Georgetown.

The government is expected to this week invite tenders to design and build the bridge. With a three-month timeline for the tenders to come in and then the evaluation process, an award and subsequent signing of a contract are likely sometime between October to December.

“The new design of the Demerara Harbour Bridge will not require opening or retraction to allow for maritime traffic and will be built with a life span of at least 50 years,” the government had said in the advertisement inviting expressions of interest for the prequalification process.

Recently, nine companies were shortlisted to build the bridge, namely: Ballast Nedam Infrastructure Suriname BV, Odebrecht Engenharia e Construcao SA, Boskalis Guyana, Effiage Genie Civil Company Ltd (Netherlands), Rizzani de Eccher Construction (Italy), China State Construction Engineering Corp, China Gezhouba Group Company Limited, JV China Railway International Group, China Road and Bridge Company, and  China Railway Construction Corporation Ltd.

It is intended that the bridge will land at Nandy Park on the East Bank of Demerara and Meer Zorgen/La Grange on the West Bank of Demerara.