Dutch firm to conduct feasibility for new Demerara Harbour Bridge

Last Updated on Thursday, 24 November 2016, 11:44 by Denis Chabrol

A Dutch firm has been selected to conduct a feasibility study for the construction of a new fixed high-span bridge across the Demerara River.

Minister of State, Joseph Harmon said Leivencse CSO’s feasibility study will examine the possibility of a public-private partnership.

“This is the final stage of feasibilities before you actually get to construction,” Harmon told a post-cabinet news conference.

Leivencse CSO, Harmon said, was selected through the procurement process by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board.

He said a pre-feasibility study done by the Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation in 2013 shows that there is need for a fixed high-span bridge across the Demerara River. The current bridge has a retractor span that opens to allow ships to pass.

The 1.5 mile long Demerara Harbour Bridge was officially opened in July 1978 and was projected to have a 10-year lifespan.