HGP Nightly News – The government has moved to recover approximately €30 million in performance bonds following the termination of contracts for two major hospital projects.
The contracts with VAMED Engineering GmbH covered the New Amsterdam Hospital Campus and the Guyana Paediatric and Maternal Hospital at Ogle.
Attorney General Anil Nandlall said each contract carried a performance bond of approximately €15 million. The government is now seeking the outstanding sums under those bonds.
The contracts were terminated on July 23 after what the government described as persistent delays and contractual breaches.Nandlall said several attempts were made to address the problems before termination.
“Government was forced to terminate both contracts,” he said. The State has since moved to secure the hospital sites and materials there.The dispute is also heading to arbitration.
Both contracts require disputes to be handled through the International Chamber of Commerce.
Nandlall said the arbitration will be seated in Guyana, despite the ICC being headquartered in Paris.
The government has also appealed aspects of High Court orders concerning control of the sites and materials while the arbitration tribunal is being established.
Nandlall maintained that the termination does not mean the hospital projects have been abandoned.
He said the legal action is intended to protect public investment while allowing both projects to eventually move forward.
