Minister: 17 Landfill Bids Will ‘Get The Best Result’
A Cabinet Minister yesterday asserted that the Government “will get the best result for the Bahamian people” after receiving 17 ‘expressions of interest’ (EoIs) for the New Providence landfill.
#Romauld Ferreira, minister of the environment and housing, conceded to Tribune Business that the process was already behind schedule, but emphasised: “We can’t sacrifice getting it right for speed and time”.
#Interested parties had to submit their landfill management proposals by December 15, 2017, with the offers scheduled to be opened four days later. However, Mr Ferreira yesterday said the submissions were only now being handed over to a Cabinet-appointed evaluation team which will recommend which bidders qualify for the Request for Proposal (RFP) round.
#While acknowledging the importance of meeting deadlines, the Minister emphasised the Minnis administration’s determination to avoid a “repeat” of the former government’s experience with Renew Bahamas, which “walked away with its tail between its legs” from managing the New Providence landfill in October 2016.
#The 17 bidders, according to a list provided by Mr Ferreira, are BISX-listed Bahamas Waste; Providence Advisors, the Bahamian investment house; Bahamas WTP Ltd; Clleen Water and Power; RRI Global; Eastern Waste Systems; OMNI Corporate Services; Marine Contractors Inc; Bahamas Processing and Trading; Valoriza Servicios Medioambientales; New Providence Smart Power; Gold Seal Industries; Supernova Dominicana; EnviroQuip; Apapa International (Nassau); NP Eco-Park Ltd; and EBT Services International and Gel Tech Solutions.
#One name missing from the list is Stellar Energy, the waste-to-energy proponent, which was at the heart of the Letter of Intent (LoI) controversy surrounding now-minister of agriculture and marine resources, Renward Wells, when he was part of the former Christie government.
#Stellar had repeatedly given notice of its intention to bid on the latest landfill tender, and it is possible the company may be part of one of the 17 EoIs. Several of the bids are likely to involve groups or consortiums of investors. Providence Advisors, for instance, is likely to have partnered with waste disposal companies in its offer.
#Providence Advisors, headed by well-known financier Kenwood Kerr, had teamed with the all-Bahamian Waste Resources Development Group (WRDG), a 10-strong consortium of local waste services providers, to submit a bid on the Request for Proposal (RFP) launched in the last days of the Christie administration. That process was subsequently annulled by the new government.
#However, Mr Ferreira yesterday revealed that group had now split into two competing bids – the Bahamas Waste offer, and the one submitted by Providence Advisors.
#“We had some delays in opening the Expressions of Interest, but we’ve received 17 in total,” the Minister told Tribune Business. “That’s a good number to start with; some local, and some from outside.
… more
Image: Prylarer (Pixabay)