Minister mulls blacklisting firm over National Road 2, 22

Minister of Public Works and Transport Sun Chanthol has warned that a South Korean company that was awarded the contracts to construct stretches of National Roads 2 and 22 may be blacklisted from operating in the Kingdom after the ministry determined it had worked too slowly and built poor-quality roads.

Chanthol gave the warning while leading a technical team of specialists to inspect progress on the construction of both national roads on April 23.

He said that after inspecting and testing the roads, the ministry found that the construction failed to comply with technical standards and he demanded immediate fixes.

“We went to test the foundations [of the road] and in some places they were durable but most of them fall below the standards set by the ministry. So I ordered my team to start demolishing the faulty portions from beginning to end.

“There are hundreds, maybe even thousands of examples to present to the technical inspection company and the construction firm where we couldn’t accept the quality of the roads the builders handed over to us,” he emphasised.

He noted that the Hanshin Engineering & Construction Co Ltd – which was awarded the contract to build the two national roads – also had the same sort of problems with its construction of a stretch of National Road 21, and therefore the ministry was considering blacklisting the company.

“Before discussing other projects we should decide whether to allow Hanshin to join the bidding process or not. We must decide whether we want any more headaches from this company blowing smoke at us,” Chanthol said. “We will discuss the issue further with the Korean side.

“Since there are so many problems with the construction on national roads 21, 22 and 2, we must decide whether this company should be allowed to bid again or if we make an agreement with Korea that from today we’re banning Hanshin from bidding for five years and blacklisting it.”

He added that in order to restore the stretches, the ministry’s technical team must demolish the road’s foundations and present a plan with procedures on how to solve these problems.

“Some places will need to be dug out again. We’ll have to dig them out in order to meet the technical specifications and to set an example for other companies that warns them that they must build high-quality roads according to the standards as agreed upon and not just make a perfunctory effort,” he said.

He noted that the construction of the roads cost more than $50 million and was financed by a loan from Korea. The AC concrete roads are intended to last 10-15 years.

Chanthol added that under the terms of the contract the works was to be completed in April 2022, but the company requested a four-month extension until August of this year.

“The excuse made by the construction company was that it was because of Covid. But I say don’t blame Covid for slow-construction of the roads. We have to look at the roots of the problem and we are aware that the company doesn’t have the standard machinery listed at market prices either,” he said.

However, he said he agreed to the delay and is waiting to see if the company complies with the technical standards or repeats its poor efforts again, which would be unacceptable to the ministry if it happens again in August.

He said that preferably the company will sit down and talk with the ministry’s technical team and with the third-party technical inspection firm so they correct everything – not just in one or a few places, but everywhere, and until then construction will be suspended if need be.

He also asked for patience from the public who used the roads and have already been inconvenienced by the construction for some time now.

Asia Injury Prevention Foundation country director Kim Panga said the ministry’s inspection of the quality of the roads was key to ensuring that the roads the ministry had sought assistance or loans to construct were of high-quality, long-lasting and safe.

“And we know that building each road takes many years and if the project is delayed it causes difficulties for the people,” he said. “Right now it seems like the public works ministry is paying attention to the quality of roads being built while also speeding up construction times ... but the inspections should result in improved road conditions.”

https://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/ ... -road-2-22

It won't be an easy task I would imagine for any contractor. Once the contract has been sealed, more than likely that you may have been cheaper on price than your competitors. But the main problem I would imagine comes when he faces high inflated prices on materials and machinery from Cambodian suppliers.

This dispute has been going on for some time.
Complaints with the company's work standards on National road 21 were raised in 2016 : newsworthy/korean-violates-contract-rec ... t9977.html

Also in 2016, Hanshin company are being investigated for breaching safety regulations after two men died in an accident on a bridge under construction: post137227.html#p137227

Freightdog wrote: ↑Mon Apr 25, 2022 4:48 pm The construction company is Korean; how many, and what spread of qualifications and abilities, of the workers are Cambodian?
The finance is from Korea. What safeguards are in place to ensure that the product received is to standard, before payment is made?

I smell something not wholesome. There may well be very limited incentive for this to be properly addressed.

According to both reports from 2016, the Korean construction company, Hanshin Engineering and Construction, illegally subcontracted out the construction. It is possible that this is also part of the current problem with roads 2 and 22.

Sun Chanthol, the Minister of Public Works and Transport, said last week that Hanshin Engineering and Construction Company, a Korean firm that won the contract to improve National Road 21, violated the contract with the government by hiring a subcontractor to do the job.

The construction project in Sa’ang district’s Preak Koy commune is being overseen by Hanshin Engineering and Construction, although the physical construction was subcontracted to MICG, then again to a firm called CJCG.

CEOCambodiaNews wrote: ↑Mon Apr 25, 2022 5:05 pm

Freightdog wrote: ↑Mon Apr 25, 2022 4:48 pm The construction company is Korean; how many, and what spread of qualifications and abilities, of the workers are Cambodian?
The finance is from Korea. What safeguards are in place to ensure that the product received is to standard, before payment is made?

I smell something not wholesome. There may well be very limited incentive for this to be properly addressed.

According to both reports from 2016, the Korean construction company, Hanshin Engineering and Construction, illegally subcontracted out the construction. It is possible that this is also part of the current problem with roads 2 and 22.

Sun Chanthol, the Minister of Public Works and Transport, said last week that Hanshin Engineering and Construction Company, a Korean firm that won the contract to improve National Road 21, violated the contract with the government by hiring a subcontractor to do the job.

The construction project in Sa’ang district’s Preak Koy commune is being overseen by Hanshin Engineering and Construction, although the physical construction was subcontracted to MICG, then again to a firm called CJCG.

Every single inch of road constructed here gets subcontracted in one way or another. No matter the budget there's less than 50% of said budget making it into the actual road imo, corners get cut everywhere

Met some of the management of the Korean company briefly before they started the projects, never worked with them and no info - I believe they are a long-standing business. Just checked and they are also publicly traded. Not that it would absolve them in any way, rather they would have an incentive to do things properly and protect their name & shareholder value. I wonder if they used the good old Boeing business model, take a successful long-standing company and cut costs so drastically you temporarily increase profit margin but create huge issues for the company down the line.

UPDATE

Cambodia News, Kandal province: Kandal provincial authorities have urged the South Korean company HAN SHIN to speed up the construction of National Road 2 from the Takhmao roundabout to the base of the Prek Hoor bridge as soon as possible to facilitate the movement of people and goods.

Please be reminded that South Korean company Hanshin, which has been awarded the right to build National Road No. 2 and No. 22, has previously been strongly criticized by Senior Minister Sun Chanthol, Cambodian Minister of Public Works and Transport, for their slow construction pace and shoddy work standards.