Last September, the government announced that its new asphalt plant was fully operational after being handed over to the Public Works Department by the Switzerland-based company Ammann.
Since, then, however, the plant has been experiencing “teething pains” that have precluded it from producing a consistent supply of asphalt, Communications and Works Minister Kye Rymer said April 18 in response to questions asked during a press conference.
First, the facility faced an oil tank problem that required a strainer, and then a main belt “shredded” along with some damaged auxiliary belts, according to the minister.
For now, the plant is “up and running,” but it is still doing test batches to ensure a quality product, he added.
“We are actually in the process of bringing back in [Ammann, which] commissioned the plant, to actually run it for some time so that we can make sure that all the components that needed to be ordered are ordered and make sure the plant is working consistently,” Mr. Rymer said. “But in terms of road repairs, we haven’t had a bit of consistency in terms of the plant producing asphalt.”
The recent delays are not the first. In late 2019, equipment for the facility arrived in the territory, but the project stalled while planners struggled to secure an appropriate site after the originally planned area proved to be “dusty,” officials said previously.
Construction was further set back during the pandemic due to shipping delays for specialised electrical components, they added.