Caption: Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, left, and Minister of Works and Infrastructure Jearlean John

Summary

• UDeCOTT has received 965 Expressions of Interest (EOIs) for projects under the Government’s Revitalization Blueprint launched in December.
• Procurement is expected to begin in February, with projects targeted to start by May/June.
• Works and Infrastructure Minister Jearlean John said the EOI deadline was extended from January 22 to February 5 due to demand.
• The Ministry identified 13 geographic “nodes” and 21 EOI categories, covering 129 projects, including waterfront real estate, financial districts and port works.
• John said submissions include local and international investors; UDeCOTT has reviewed 190,000 pages so far.

By Alicia Chamely

CLOSE to 1,000 Expressions of Interest (EOIs) have been received by the Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago (UDeCOTT) for projects under the Government’s Revitalization Blueprint, launched in December last year.

The procurement process is expected to begin in February, with projects slated to start in May/June.

Speaking at a press conference on Sunday at the United National Congress headquarters in Chaguanas, Minister of Works and Infrastructure Jearlean John provided updates on the initiative, which includes waterfront real estate, financial districts and port construction.

John said the first phase—the EOI submission period—was originally scheduled to close on January 22 but, due to high demand, the deadline was extended to February 5.

She explained that the Ministry identified 13 “nodes,” or geographic areas designated for projects, including the San Fernando waterfront and Invaders Bay, Port of Spain. She added that 21 EOI categories were created, covering 129 projects in total.

John described the response as “spectacular” and outlined submissions by category:

• Luxury Waterfront Real Estate Development (Hotels, Housing, Waterfront Entertainment): 57
• Financial District Development and Luxury Waterfront Real Estate Development: 43
• Shallow Water Dredging and Reclamation, Port Design, Construction and Operations: 40
• Retail Construction and Operation: 59
• Integrated Smart Transport Solutions (Design, Construct and Operate): 34
• Real Estate High-Density Housing Development: 57
• Civic Social Infrastructure Development: 54
• Shallow Water Dredging and Reclamation, Industrial Park Design, Construction and Operations: 39
• Real Estate High-Density Mixed-Use Development: 55
• Civic National Security Infrastructure Development: 48
• Real Estate High-Density Office Development: 48
• Real Estate High-Density Car Park Development: 44
• Civic Arts and Culture Infrastructure: 43
• Civic Health Specialist Infrastructure: 45
• Civic Green Space Park Development and Retail: 55
• Energy Recovery Facilities: 36
• Civic National Prisons Security Infrastructure Development: 44
• Real Estate Medium-Density Housing Development: 52
• Civic Transport Infrastructure Upgrade: 43
• Civic Utility Infrastructure Upgrade: 35
• Civic Shallow Land Reclamation (Design and Construction): 34

“In all, we received 965 submissions,” John said.

She stated that UDeCOTT has reviewed 190,000 pages of submissions and was “still counting.” She added that the EOIs reflected interest from both local and international investors, including from China, the United States, India, France, South Africa, Peru and the Netherlands.

John said the Government aims to position Trinidad and Tobago as an investment hub and that the initiative would support a higher standard of living for citizens. “This was a blowout for Trinidad and Tobago; we positioned ourselves well,” she said.

If you want, I can also (1) tighten it to a shorter newsroom-style article, or (2) make the tone more strictly neutral by reducing promotional language like “blowout” and “spectacular.”