Durrant Pate/ Contributor

French-based company, VINCI Construction Grands Projets, has won another multi-billion-dollar contract in Jamaica through the National Water Commission (NWC), which has selected it to carry out phase 1 of the Western Water Resilience Programme.

The €144 million (J$26.5 billion) contract is to renovate and develop the drinking water network in the north-west of the country, where demographic growth is high, and both the tourism and manufacturing industries are expanding. It falls within a wider programme implemented by the Jamaican government to mitigate the impact of droughts in order to bolster the island’s climate resilience by safeguarding the long-term future of the water supply network and reducing water loss.

The contract involves designing and building 68 km of wide cast-iron pipeline. The work extends over nearly 130 km, along an existing roadway and crossing a number of sensitive structures and zones. It is scheduled to last 36 months and mobilise over 100 people.

The materials used will further enhance the network’s durability, with an expected useful life exceeding 50 years. 

The work will be carried out in close collaboration with the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) so as to better protect natural habitats, especially when crossing rivers. Having operated in Jamaica since 1999, VINCI Construction Grands Projets is supporting the NWC to develop effective infrastructure for drinking water and wastewater treatment. 

In 2025, its teams were involved in emergency repair work following Hurricane Melissa to restore drinking water to the country’s second-largest city, Montego Bay. They are currently working on a project for the third-largest drinking water treatment plant on the island at Rio Cobre.

VINCI Construction, through its subsidiaries, played a significant role in the development, operation, and maintenance of the Highway 2000 project in Jamaica, which is the largest infrastructure project in the English-speaking Caribbean. VINCI was involved in the development of Phase 1 of the East-West leg of the highway, which includes the Portmore Causeway and sections from Kingston to May Pen.

The Jamaica Infrastructure Operator Limited (JIO), responsible for operating and maintaining the highway, was owned by VINCI Concessions (51%) and Bouygues (49%). In December 2019, the National Road Operating and Constructing Company (NROCC) purchased 100% of TransJamaican Highway’s equity from the former shareholders, including VINCI/ASF, in preparation for an IPO, making the company fully Jamaican-owned. 

Despite the sale of the concession, VINCI has continued to have a presence in Jamaican infrastructure development, maintaining a local office. VINCI is a world leader in concessions, energy solutions and construction, employing 285,000 people in more than 120 countries.