The president of a construction firm undertaking much of the preparatory work for the United States military build-up on Guam says other contractors will suffer from the delay announced this week.
The relocation of about 8,000 marines and their approximately 9,000 dependents from Okinawa to the US territory is part of a broader 2006 accord to reorganise United States troops in Japan.
The governments of both countries announced a postponement this week to as soon as possible after the planned date of 2014, which proponents say will allow more time to get the necessary infrastructure in place.
But Denny Watts of Watts Constructors says many companies have been working to the original timeline.
"A number of contractors from many areas have geared up and have already moved into the islands, have expended large amounts of capital to be able to set themselves up and have capitalised that. So they're there to meet what was expected to be the demand, the amount of work that was supposed to come out."
Denny Watts says many people expect the number of build-up related projects to grow.
