Company Secretary of Impeccable Construction & General Supplies Inc. Ayodele Roache says the company and AR Total Logistics Solutions Inc. have lodged a formal complaint with the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) over more than $610.6 million in fertilizer contracts they say were awarded to them but were never handed over for execution.

Roache, who is also a director of AR Total Logistics Solutions Inc., told Kiskadee Watch last week  that the contracts were properly tendered and the awards were subsequently advertised by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB).

In fact, she said she happened to be at NPTAB when she saw a procurement officer from NAREI collecting the contracts. However, the contracts were not subsequently handed over to the companies for execution and they were instead told that the Ministry of Agriculture was awaiting additional funding before the contracts could proceed.

“The ministry never gave the contracts over to our company. Instead, they said that they’re holding it until they have enough money,” Roache recalled, adding that the companies were told that they had to wait until the National Assembly approved additional funds.

The companies have been seeking clarification from the ministry since September last year but continued to receive the same explanation about funding. They subsequently sent formal letters to the Permanent Secretary, the Minister of Agriculture, NAREI’s procurement department and the NAREI Chief Executive Officer seeking information on when the contracts would be issued and when the works could be executed.

But Roache said that none of the letters was acknowledged.The companies, she continued, eventually met with the NAREI CEO, who indicated that, to his knowledge, the works associated with the contracts had already been carried out by another company. “We indicated to him that, no, we did not execute the contract,” Roache said.

The companies had maintained regular contact with the ministry and NAREI and had visited the relevant offices at least once or twice a month, making it unlikely that the authorities were unable to reach them, she noted. So they are now seeking to determine what happened to the contracts and whether the works were subsequently carried out by another contractor.

The companies have also sought clarification from NPTAB on whether the publication of their awards was the result of an error, but NPTAB made it clear that there had been no mistake in publishing the companies as successful bidders and that no correction had been issued.

Roache said the companies are now awaiting a response from the PPC and, depending on the outcome, could pursue legal action. “Upon advice, we were told to send a complaint to the Public Procurement Commission,” she said. “So we’re waiting to hear back from the Public Procurement Commission. And if it’s not satisfactory to us, then we’re going to move to the courts.”

The Public Procurement Commission has not been reconstituted since its life expired. A secretariat is in place.

The issue involves more than $610.6 million in fertilizer contracts awarded by the Ministry of Agriculture after a procurement exercise for the supply and delivery of granular urea and 15:15:15 NPK fertilizer to Regions One to 10.

Documents identify the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), under the Ministry of Agriculture, as the procuring entity. The tender called for the supply of 13,750 metric tonnes of granular urea and 2,000 metric tonnes of 15:15:15 NPK fertilizer across 10 lots.

The tender closed on January 21, 2025, while the awards were subsequently published on the NPTAB website on November 21, 2025.

AR Total Logistics Solutions Inc. was identified as the successful bidder for Lot 6, valued at $558.125 million, while Impeccable Construction & General Supplies Inc. was identified as the successful bidder for four other lots with a combined value of $52.5 million.

AR Total Logistics Solutions says it submitted bids for all 10 lots and was subsequently identified as the successful bidder for Lot 6.

After learning of the published award, the company says it contacted the Ministry of Agriculture to determine when the contract would be available for signing and when it could begin fulfilling its obligations.

In anticipation of the contract being executed, AR Total Logistics says it engaged suppliers and transportation providers and made other logistical arrangements based on the quantities and delivery requirements associated with Lot 6.

The company says the continued absence of a signed contract has resulted in financial uncertainty and loss of a business opportunity, including profits it had anticipated from the $558.125 million award.

Roache said the companies cannot simply allow the matter to remain unresolved because preparing bids and making the necessary logistical arrangements involve significant expenditure. “It’s not a case where we can just sit back and allow this to go without any proper explanation or any compensation,” she said.

Kiskadee Watch contacted Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha, along with the NPTAB office for comment but was unsuccessful.