Boram Airport upgrade behind schedule: NAC

By PETER ESILA
EAST Sepik’s Boram Airport upgrade will not be completed as work is behind schedule, National Airports Corporation (NAC) managing director Rex Kiponge says.
He said a new terminal would not be built as previously planned and the contractor was instructed not to demolish the existing terminal building.
This was because there would not be enough time to construct a new one as the civil aviation development investment programme (Cadip) 1 would end on Nov 24.
The NAC, the Asian Development Bank review mission, Treasury and National Planning department officials visited Boram last Friday to assess the K68.63 million project.
“We have made a decision for the contractor not to demolish the existing terminal for the construction of a new one,” Kiponge said.
He said when the contractor presented the project schedule, he saw that work was behind schedule.
“To the date of the completion of Cadip 1, he (contractor) would have completed only 30 per cent of the terminal and under the ADB requirements, that is way below.
“But we will make a decision in the coming weeks what to do with the existing terminal.”
Kiponge said, however, that 50 per cent of the runway had been completed.
The runway was extended by 20 metres and three airport safety officers’ houses had been built along with a tractor shed and apron.
“We have identified Boram as a critical project and the terminal construction has not even started yet, so I am trying my best to see how we can factor the remaining work at the closure of Cadip 1,” Kiponge said.
“Even if work on the terminal is to start, we would have only three months, so how much can you achieve within three months?”