'No Threat to Guyana WC Stadium'

The Guyana government on Wednesday rushed to pour cold water on a published report that a feasibility study demanded by the IMF would interrupt construction on a new cricket stadium for the 2007 World Cup.

"The construction is proceeding. There will be no delays. The feasibility study will be done simultaneously with the construction work. This study is merely intended to confirm that the construction of the cricket stadium is financially sustainable and, if not, to take compensatory financial action," the Guyana government said.

The new stadium being built on the outskirts of the capital Georgetown will have a capacity of roughly 15,000 and will host six quarter-final matches when the World Cup tournament bowls off in the Caribbean in 2007.

The Indian government has promised assistance to fund the construction of the stadium with a donation of US$6 million and a soft loan on US$14 million.

The government's reassurance came after the local Stabroek News reported that the IMF was demanding a feasibility study of the proposed stadium to ensure that the spending met certain targets as set out in Guyana's Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF).

Chris Dehring, managing director of ICC World Cup West Indies 2007 Inc. told CaribbeanCricket.com he was monitoring the situation closely to ensure that every aspect of the territories' commitments were being met.

"The availability of funding for the stadium development in Guyana and the necessary Government guarantee on Guyana's commitments are two of the areas we will closely monitor to ensure that CWC 2007 will be able to stage matches there. If either of these important elements among others are impacted for whatever reason, clearly we would need to re-evaluate Guyana's role in CWC 2007," Dehring warned.

In any event, Dehring said a "a comprehensive relocation plan" was being prepared for all match awards.

Bermuda has already been identified as a back-up venue.