Isa Town flyover case adjourned

Manama, March 17, 2010

A Bahrain court has adjourned the dispute over the stalled Isa Town flyover project.

The Urgent Matters Court initially lifted an order freezing a BD4 million guarantee, which was deposited by South Korean contractor Sungwon.

This effectively meant the government could help itself to the money after cancelling the company's contract due to alleged delays with the project, according to a report in our sister newspaper Gulf Daily News.

However, the firm's lawyer Fatima Al Hawaj yesterday appealed against that decision - saying the court had no legal right to 'unfreeze' the bond before experts had submitted their report.

Judges adjourned the case to Sunday.

Al Hawaj was appearing in the court for the second day running after submitting a cheque for BD30,000 on behalf of Sungwon on Monday.

That money will be used to pay technical experts to examine the Isa Town flyover construction site.

Sungwon was brought in to build the BD43 million flyover, but its contract was terminated last month when the government claimed it had not finished half of the work.

The company has taken the Works Ministry to court, arguing it had no right to cancel the contract, seize the company's equipment and claim the BD4m bond.

Work on the flyover was supposed to finish by July, but the ministry terminated the contract claiming the firm was facing financial difficulties in Korea and Dubai and 'failed to honour its commitments in continuing the work'.-TradeArabia News Service

Tags: Bahrain | Construction | Sungwon | Korean | Flyover | court case |