Lagos-Ibadan rail: Amaechi to meet contractor over inadequate equipment
Barring any last minute change, the Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, is expected to meet with the Managing Director of China Civil Engineering and Construction Company (CCECC), the contractor handling the $1.5bn Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge project this week, Daily Trust can report.
The meeting is to appraise some of the challenges being encountered in the implementation of the project which, from all indications, had made the December target unrealistic.
Amaechi gave a hint on the planned meeting on Thursday when he inspected the project in Ibadan and Abeokuta.
According to Amaechi, he would be interfacing with the CCECC boss over inadequate equipment, especially for the launching of beams 000.
In building construction, a beam is a horizontal member spanning an opening and carrying a load that may be a brick or stone wall above the opening. It is also called a lintel.
The project comprises four extralarge bridges, 11 large bridges, four medium bridges, among others as well as 708 32m beams.
Already, many bridges have been constructed but the launching of the beams is currently an issue of contention with the minister saying the launching of the beams may not be completed in three months’ time.
He said, “I am ready to meet the MD. The problem is that they are ready to launch beams but they don’t have enough equipment. If they don’t get more equipment, then we may have a problem. They have just two, one launching for Ibadan and they still have five outstanding bridges. Then there is another one launching from Papalanto to Abeokuta.
“And if they launched them together, it would be three months. Even if they do that in Lagos, they still have about four or five to get to Lagos. Until they launch the beams, you can’t cross,” he stated.
A source privy to the project said the minister would also use the meeting with the MD to discuss other challenges like inadequate manpower and the need to deliver the project in the first or second month of next year if the December 2018 target is no longer feasible.