Maripoma Enterprise Limited, the construction company working on the Ofankor-Nsawam dual carriageway road project, has requested for one year extension to complete the work.
Thus, the project would now be expected to be completed in July next year.
The $346.5 million road rehabilitation project is jointly funded by the government and Maripoma Enterprise Limited, a wholly-owned Ghanaian construction company, which is also executing the project under a Design and Build Contract with Associated Consultants Limited as the supervising consultants.
Work on the 33.4kilometre road project started in July 2022 is scheduled to be completed in July this year.
However, with some few days to the July deadline, only a little of over 60 per cent of the physical work on the project has been completed.
The Chief Resident Engineer on the project, Kwabena Bimpong, told the Ghanaian Times in an exclusive interview on Friday that the contractor had written to his outfit to extend the contract for one year.
Mr Bimpong said his outfit had written back to the contractor to provide detailed particulars of their request for extension.
This, he said, would inform his outfit the recommendations to be made to the employer, the Ministry of Roads and Highways, for extension of the contract.
He indicated that though the contractor had asked for extension which had not yet been approved, the project would continue until completed.
According to Mr Bimpong, though it was public knowledge that land litigation, relocation of utility lines had affected the pace of work, there was the need for the contractor to officially explain why the contract should be extended.
He underscores numerous litigations arose because some individuals along the project stretch who were affected by the relocation of the utility lines went to court to stop the process.
Mr Bimpong explained that a section of the project starting from Ofankor to China Mall was now scheduled to be completed in September 2024.
Currently, he said, asphalting of the road had started from “Festus” to Amasaman.
Moreover, Mr Bimpong said the contractor had increased the rate of work and was running day and night shifts for the early completion of the project.
The Chief Resident Engineer noted that all the most of the difficult and time consuming portions of the physical works had been completed.
He noted that the bridges made up of the Ofankor railway, Kpobiman, and Medie were far advanced and the Amasaman interchange was impacted by many structures within “the right of way.”
Mr Bimpong further said similarly, the Nsawam underpass was however yet to start due to similar challenges, especially utilities and the completion of drainage and footbridges were also far advanced.
The 33.4kilometre road project forms part of the Accra-Kumasi road National Road Six (N6) network.
The project includes the construction of interchanges, flyovers, footbridges and bridges at Amasaman, Kpobiman, Medie and Nsawam Junction.
It also involves the construction of eight lanes road from Ofankor to Pokuase Interchange, and 10 lanes from Pokuase footbridge to the Nsawam-Bypass.
The completion of the road would ease traffic on the Accra-Nsawam route and promote socio-economic activities along the stretch.
In addition the road would facilitate trade between Ghana and its Sahelian neighbour regions such as Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
BY KINGSLEY ASARE
