In a race to keep the Demerara Harbour Bridge up to its great demand, management is moving to replace almost all the chains which help anchor the facility to its floating pontoons.Although seeing more than 7,000 vehicles criss-crossing daily, the aging structure has been incurring losses because of high maintenance costs.It has long surpassed the 10 years lifespan – it was commissioned in July 1978 – and governments since have been forced to shell out hundreds of millions annually to help keep it afloat.Yesterday, bids were opened for the supply of a staggering 22,500 feet of galvanized anchor chains – “hot-dipped” for extra strength.There were two bids opened by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board with an Engineer’s Estimate projecting the chains to cost $63M. The bids opened were:BidderAmountMahendranauth Boodhoo$65,250,000Brenco Shipping and Trading Co. Limited$56,700,000The Guyana Defence Force, in the meantime, is moving to construct a pontoon for its Coast Guard arm. An Engineer’s Estimate has placed the cost to $30,848,232. The bids opened yesterday:BidderAmountCourtney Benn Contracting Services Limited$36,147,440Guyana National Industrial Company$37,418,977Meanwhile, residents of Leguan, Essequibo Islands, Region Three, are to see their main roads undergo major repairs. Two sets of bids were opened yesterday for rehabilitation and construction of the main road from Waterloo to Success Pump Station – representing Lot 1 – and sections of the main road from Dornhaag to Uniform, representing Lot 2.The Engineer’s Estimate for Lot 1 is $49,138,736 while for Lot 2 it is $18,798,475. The bids opened:BidderAmountMohamed Fawaz Bacchus ConstructionLot 1 —Lot 2 $23,772,708CAB Construction ServicesLot 1 —Lot 2 $24,579,938KB&B ContractorsLot 1 $84,611,061Lot 2 $31,623,678G. Bovell Construction ServicesLot 1 $56,166,782Lot 2 $19,Wholesale Adidas Hockey Jerseys,619,288Eagle Transportation and General ConstructionLot 1 $62,335,926Lot 2 $24,027,870Mohamed Ramzan and ConstructionLot 1 $61,216,168Lot 2 $24,446,051 |