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Or, a rising star in the booming construction sector caught in the cross-hairs of an arch rival and on criminal charges related to bid-rigging? Industry watchers say the story contains the two elements. But the man under scrutiny, contractor Hafeez Karamath, insists that he has received no special favours from the State-run Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago (UDeCOTT), or anybody else for that matter, and that rumours swirling about his so-called political and business connections are just that. Karamath, who is before the courts on criminal charges related to the US$150 million desalination water plant at Point Lisas, is hanging tough, ignoring his critics and pushing full speed ahead to catch up on government-funded projects that have fallen behind schedule and over-budget-among them, the Manning administration's much-trumpeted Brian Lara Cricket Stadium in Torouba.
Granite Construction Inc. is part of a joint venture team that was awarded a $420 million design-build project in Missouri, the company said Tuesday. Watsonville-based Granite (NYSE:GVA) said its wholly-owned subsidiary, Granite Construction Co., is collaborating with St. Louis-base Fred Weber Inc. and St. Charles-based Millstone-Bangert Inc. on the project for the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission. .
MC Industrial Inc. is providing services to Center Ethanol Co. LLC for its new plant in Sauget, Ill. Construction of the $93 million plant began this month. MC Industrial will provide engineering, procurement, construction and design-build services to Center Ethanol. .
The pace of new home construction in Ottawa slowed in September, in line with the national trend. New home starts dipped by over 13 per cent in September to 420, compared to 484 in the same month last year. Both single-detached and multiple starts were lower, but developers are showing a preference for multi-family developments as the price of single-detached homes continues to escalate beyond the reach of many buyers. Despite the September dip, home starts so far this year have been noticeably stronger than 2005. Total starts have reached 4,299 units since the beginning of the year, up 18 per cent over the first nine months of 2005. Builders took advantage of a warm winter to get an early start on the 2006 season. "The home construction decline observed in the single-detached home segment is continuing," says Pascal-Yvan Pelletier, Ottawa market analyst for Canada Mortgage and Housing.
Kentucky is receiving a grant from the United States' Department of Energy (DOE) to help teach builders and the public about the benefits of energy efficient buildings.The commonwealth will partner with the University of Kentucky's College of Agriculture to develop a program curriculum and the Cooperative Extension Service to help spread awareness of energy efficient buildings to the public, specifically homeowners. The Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) will also help curriculum development and training.The application was for $485,731. A final award amount will be determined after the DOE negotiates and signs a final project agreement with the state. The University of Kentucky will also add an additional $140,933. The grand total of the project could be as high as $626,664 pending final contract negotiations with DOE.“This grant will help make Kentucky a leader in providing our citizens with better homes and buildings through education and technology," said Governor Ernie Fletcher.
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