Western Cluster Limited (WCL) and the Ministry of Public Works have commenced the rehabilitation of the damaged Lofa Bridge on Friday August 24 amidst cheers and jubilations by local residents whose movements were hindered following the closure of the bridge several months ago.

The bridge was closed down by the Liberian Government in early April due to its dilapidated state.

Under the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Ministry of Public Works and Western Cluster Limited, the ministry is providing technical expertise, equipment and machinery to supervise and execute the entire rehabilitation works, while the company is entirely funding the project.

The rehabilitation works will be completed within a month.

WCL’s Executive Director, Mr. Atul Mittal, said “The intervention of WCL to finance the rehabilitation of the bridge is in line with the company’s social responsibility to the people of Liberia and those in Western Liberia where it holds three iron ore mining concessions”.

He said, “This is an intervention to allow residents and travellers to freely commute between Bomi, Gbarpolu and Grand Cape Mount Counties which was hindered as a result of the closure of the bridge in April”.

Speaking at the start of the project in Grand Cape Mount County, Public Works Minister Samuel Kofi Woods commended Western Cluster Limited for partnering with the ministry to undertake such project.

Minister Woods stressed that works undertaken on these infrastructures are gear towards improving the lives of the Liberian people noting that the collective effort to buttress government’s developmental initiative in the rebuilding process should be a key priority of all partners.

He called on other concessionaires to emulate the good example of WCL adding, “It is through honest and sincere collaborative efforts like the one with Western Cluster, Liberians can benefit from the operations of concessionaires”

The then National Iron Ore Company (NIOC) constructed the Lofa Bridge in 1961. The bridge was used by NIOC to transport iron ore from the Mano River Mines to the Freeport of Monrovia through Bomi County.

At present, the bridge which lies across the Lofa River between Grand Cape Mount and Gbarpolu Counties, serves as a shorter route for commuters and traders travelling from Bomi and Gbarpolu Counties to Grand Cape Mount County.

About Western Cluster Limited

Western Cluster Limited (WCL) is a Liberia based subsidiary of Sesa Goa Limited (SGL) of India engaged in developing Liberia’s three iron ore deposits namely the Bea, Bomi and Mano River Mines located in the country’s western region into a large integrated iron ore project.

SGL is India’s largest producer and exporter of iron ore in the private sector. For over five decades, it has been involved in iron ore mining, beneficiation and exports. SGL is also a majority-owned subsidiary of Vedanta Resources plc (Vedanta), the London-based FTSE 100 metals and mining group which operates across the following core business sectors: Zinc-Lead-Silver, Copper, Aluminium, Iron Ore and Energy, with operations in India, Australia, UAE, Zambia, South Africa, Namibia and Ireland.