Last Updated on November 25, 2019, 11:11 PM AST by Anthony Morris
Construction of the nearly EC$150 million second cruise ship pier at Port Zante is complete but there is no word when it will be used by the dwindling number of cruise ships and cruise passengers for the 2019/2020 cruise season.
According to a source, a piece of the large bedrock found at the construction site in August 2018, is said to be sticking out of the sand although special equipment was brought in to crack up the rock in July this year.
“The service provider did not get to crack up (all) the rock and no cruise ship will dock before the hard rock is cracked up,” the source said over the weekend.
“This could become another legal issue between SCASPA and the contractors,” another source disclosed.
It was reported last year that a large solid bed of rock was discovered during construction and the first plan was to remove it by using dynamite, but that plan was scuttled following concerns that blasting would have serious negative impact on the underwater environment as well as severe damage to the existing bulkhead.
In July this year, it was reported that a ship with special equipment was under contract to break up large solid rock on the seabed as well as other high spots, would have caused severe damage to the bottom of cruise ships when berthing.
Slapped with an additional US$7 million (EC$18.9 million) bill, the matter between the contractors, Canadian Commercial Corporation and the St Christopher Air and Sea Ports Authority (SCASPA) went to arbitration in Jamaica but the parties have reportedly failed to reach a settlement.
Earlier this month, Minister of Tourism Hon Lindsay Grant said the construction of the pier was completed and Minister Liburd of Infrastructure, Hon Ian Patches Liburd said a formal opening ceremony could be held in November. It is said he is still awaiting an assessment of the depth of the water around the new pier.
During St Kitts-Nevis Labour Party administration second cruise ship pierproject was scheduled to cost of EC$86.4 million, but now the cost of the project has jumped to a staggering EC$129.6 million under the Dr Timothy Harris-led Team Unity Government, which is EC$43.2 million more . Another additional US$7 million (EC$18.9 million) would take the price tag to EC$148.5 million and counting.
St Christopher Air and Sea Ports Authority (SCASPA) have secured a EC$91.8 million loan from St Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla National Bank, EC$18.9 million from St. Christopher and Nevis Social Security Board, EC$13.5 million from St. Kitts and Nevis Sugar Industry Diversification Foundation (SIDF) and EC$5.4 million from St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla Trading and Development Company (TDC)to finance the project.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
