The Fiji government is being forced to spend 16-point-5 million US dollars to complete part of a major road building project abandoned unfinished by a Chinese company.
COVEC from China was given the contract worth 41-million US dollars to build major roads in Tailevu over 5 years ago.
But the company made little progress, blaming weather and local workers for the delays which angered local villages and transport companies.
Now the Public Works Department has given the contract to finish 30 kilometres of road to two local companies - Standard Concrete Industries and BW Holdings - with construction scheduled to be completed in 15 months.
Contracts for further segments of the road are still to be awarded.
