In Guyana, a 190 million euro project to open up Cayenne has completely stalled

In a Guyana in full population growth (+1,9% per year for 10 years), the doubling of this axis linking Cayenne to the dormitory towns of Soula and Macouria (35.000 inhabitants) is strategic. The current Larivot bridge, the only structure spanning the wide Cayenne River, is congested morning and evening by traffic jams several kilometers long.

But the project, financed entirely by the State, is encountering "a multitude of difficulties, both in terms of the foundations of the piles and the consolidation of the soil and the embankments", Ivan Martin, the Director General of Territories and the Sea (DGTM) in Guyana, told AFP.

"At each pier (of the bridge), we discovered situations which were not those anticipated in view of the existing geotechnical data (...). The design must be reviewed according to the reality on the ground," confirmed the builder, Vinci.

In order to get out of the quagmire, a dialogue body was set up on September 20. It should provide avenues of action by the end of October.

It will then be up to the prefect of Guyana to decide. Among the options: resumption of work, provided that a technical and financial agreement is reached, or in the worst-case scenario, a stoppage of the worksite, or even a termination of the contract signed in March 2022 with the construction giant.

"In mainland France, we would look for additional resources on the construction site next door. In Guyana, the resources are not available, so this has a significant cost and disrupts the construction site," acknowledges Ivan Martin.

"Race against time"

The pressure is on the project owner, the State, since the Guyanese MP Jean-Victor Castor (GDR) took up the subject by alerting the Prime Minister.

The pro-independence elected official denounces "insufficient planning and the use of obsolete planning documents" for the construction of the bridge. In this case, the 2013 Global Transport Plan is targeted, which was the first to include the doubling of the Larivot bridge on the agenda.

According to Vinci, geotechnical campaigns were carried out "before the works" and well after 2013 in order to assess the nature of the soils in this very muddy estuary.

"However, the configuration of the land encountered during the construction proved to be different from that expected," added the manufacturer, considering a second campaign necessary.

For the moment, one thing is certain: scheduled for mid-2025, the commissioning of this 1,3 km long structure "will not happen" on this date, admits Ivan Martin: "Only two piles out of 19 have emerged from the ground to date".

Now, "a race against time is underway, because any delay has a significant financial impact," the DGTM continues. The cost has not been quantified, but it will be in the order of "several million euros."

With serious consequences for local businesses. For example, the Audemard group, which invested several million euros to relocate a concrete plant near the construction site, now unused.

"We have invested a lot, but we are not producing concrete. We are supposed to supply 2.000 to 2.500 m3 per month but in September, we produced barely 150 m3," regrets the company's director, Rani Antoun.

Despite the group's annual turnover of 15-20 million, "a project like this could bring us down," the entrepreneur continues. "It's not sustainable (...). The lack of decision-making is increasing the deficit a little more every day."

A delay that is all the more damaging as this project is swallowing up almost all of the State's investment in Guyana's infrastructure.

The DGTM assures that other development operations are "not called into question or impacted" by the difficulties of the Larivot bridge. But the "underdevelopment" of Guyana, highlighted in a parliamentary report of November 2023, does not seem ready to end.