China Eximbank provides RMB 815.5 million government concessional loan for Scotland District Road Rehabilitation Project

Project narrative

On February 18, 2022, the Chinese Government and the Government of Barbados signed a preferential loan framework agreement for the Scotland District Road Rehabilitation Project. The agreement was signed by Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley and China’s Ambassador Yan Xiusheng. Then, on August 4, 2022, China Eximbank and the Government of Barbados signed an RMB 815,500,000 (BBD 256,600,000) government concessional loan (GCL) agreement for the Scotland District Road Rehabilitation Project. The loan carries the following borrowing terms: a 2% interest rate, a 20-year maturity, a 5-year grace period, a 0.25% commitment fee, and a 0.25% management fee. The borrower is expected to repay the loan in 31 equal semi-annual (principal and interest) installments. The borrower is also expected to use the proceeds of the loan to finance a commercial contract that is signed with China National Complete Plant Import Export Corporation (Complant) on November 29, 2021. The purpose of the project is to rehabilitate 109 roads and 12 bridges. These 109 roads span approximately 225 kilometers covering roads in St. Andrew, St. Joseph, St. Thomas and parts of St. John and St. Philip. Following the work in Shorey Village, work will begin at Vaughn’s Road No. 2, St. Joseph, White Hill and Bruce Vale Bridge, which is also known as Thompson Bridge, in St. Andrew. The project is expected to be implemented over the course of four years. China National Complete Plant Import Export Corporation (Complant) is the EPC contractor responsible for project implementation. Complant utilized C.O. Williams Construction Ltd. as a subcontractor for the Shorey Village and No. 2 Vaughn’s sections of the project. Barbadians reportedly accounted for 80% of laborers on the project. Construction began on August 22, 2022. As of August 2022, soil testing had also been done in White Hill in preparation for the design works to be carried out, and bridge designs for Bruce Vale had been completed. As of December 15, 2022, road works in Shorey Village were nearing completion. The project has been subject to problems, delays, and minor controversy. Road works at Kings Street, St. Andrew were briefly paused from May 30, 2023 until June 5, 2023 so that Complant could redesign a section of road to enhance road stability. The delay resulted in an article published in the Daily Nation on June 4, 2023 stating that some residents accused Complant of abandoning the project. These accusations appear to have dissipated once works resumed. Then, in September 2023, Acting Prime Minister and Minister of Transport, Works, and Water Resources, Santia Bradshaw, stated in a press conference that works in St. Andrew and St. Joseph would be restarted and prioritized in the near future following complaints about the speed of the project's implementation. Bradshaw also stated that works on the Bawdens and Thompson bridges were delayed due to a heavy rainy season, and that works at Fruitful Hill, St. Joseph had been delayed due to supply chain issues caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Then, in February 2024, a large section of Kings Street collapsed as a result of an underground water line bursting. Road works at Kings Street were temporarily delayed as laborers worked on a bypass road for residents.