Three contracts worth approximately K10 million have been signed to maintain sections of the Highlands Highway, with two contractors engaged to carry out the works.
The contracts were signed yesterday at the National Procurement Commission (NPC) boardroom at Hela 1 Building in Port Moresby, in a move aimed at ensuring key sections of the country’s busiest highway remain accessible and in good condition.
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The signing was witnessed by representatives of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and signed by Works and Highways Secretary Gibson Holemba, Amaku and Sons Construction Ltd managing director Jerry Agus, NPC board chairman and secretary for the Department of Finance Samuel Penias, and PNG SJ Construction Limited representative Zhang Meng.
NPC Board Chairman Samuel Penias said while the Government was seeing the benefits of the Connect PNG programme, maintaining the infrastructure being delivered was equally important.
“Connect PNG is real, not a fake story. People are seeing the benefits of what we do,” Mr. Penias said.
He said the Government must ensure infrastructure was properly maintained to avoid spending large amounts of money rebuilding roads that had deteriorated.
Mr. Penias said the NPC was pleased to complete the procurement processes and sign off the contracts so the contractors could commence work.
He also acknowledged the Asian Development Bank for its continued support for infrastructure development and thanked the NPC team for completing the necessary procurement processes.
Works and Highways Department Secretary, Mr. Gibson Holemba said the Highlands Highway was the country’s most important highway in terms of traffic, carrying freight and cargo to and from the Highlands and Lae.
“It carries a lot of freight traffic, cargo traffic up in the mines, coming down our cash crops from the Highlands coming into the wharf in Lae,” Mr. Holemba said.
He said continued maintenance was necessary to keep traffic moving and ensure goods and services could reach communities in the Highlands, Momase and other parts of the country.
The three contracts cover sections of the Highlands Highway, including works in the Leron, Ramu, Umi, Henganofi and Jomjumi areas.
Local contractor Amaku and Sons Construction has been awarded two contracts covering maintenance of the Leron Bridge to Umi Bridge section, a distance of about 37.7 kilometres, and the Ramu Bridge to Leron Bridge section, covering about 33.9 kilometers.
Meanwhile, the third contract was awarded to PNG SJ Construction Limited for maintenance works along the Jomjumi to Young Creek section of the Highlands Highway.
Mr. Holemba said some sections of the highway were already experiencing potholes and required urgent maintenance.
He said the maintenance contracts would complement bridges recently completed under the ADB-supported programme.
The maintenance construction works under the newly signed contracts are expected to be completed within 24 months.
Holemba also acknowledged the Road Fund for supporting temporary maintenance of the highway while the major maintenance contracts were being processed.
He described Amaku and Sons Construction as a local small-to-medium enterprise that had progressed into undertaking major construction works, while PNG SJ Construction had previously worked in New Ireland and was now expanding its maintenance operations to mainland Papua New Guinea.
Mr. Holemba said the Department of Works and Highways would work closely with the contractors to ensure the contracts were properly managed and delivered, with support from ADB and programme managers.
The signing marks another step towards maintaining the Highlands Highway, which remains a critical road link for the movement of people, agricultural produce, freight and other essential goods between the Highlands and the country’s major commercial centres.