US Army Awards $167Mln Contract For Border Wall Infrastructure Project In Texas - Pentagon

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th November, 2018) The US Army has awarded defense contractor SLSCO a $167.5-million contract for a border wall project in the state of Texas, the Department of Defense said in a press release.

"SLSCO, Galveston, Texas, was awarded a $167,460,000 firm-fixed-price contract for border infrastructure design and build," the release said on Tuesday. "Work will be performed in Mission, Texas, with an estimated completion date of May 4, 2020."

The Defense Department explained in the release the funding comes from the fiscal year 2018 Omnibus bill.

The town of Mission is located in the Rio Grande Valley sector, located near the Mexican border in southern Texas. The area leads the nation in cross-border alien and drug trafficking, according to US Customs and Border Protection data, with a total of 137,562 arrests in 2017.

In January 2017, US President Donald Trump delivered on his signature campaign pledge and signed an executive order that initiated the process of building a wall on the US-Mexico border. Trump seeks that Congress approves at least $5 billion in funding to construct the wall.