The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The preferred bidder for the management and operation of the New Providence landfill is expected to be selected by mid-March next year, Environment and Housing Minister Romauld Ferreira stated yesterday, acknowledging the landfill was ‘no instant fix’.

Government has issued an expression of interest (EOI) for the pre-qualification of a request for proposal (RFP) to manage and operate the landfill.

The EOI has been published in the local dailies and interested parties can obtain a copy of the document from the Ministry of Housing and Environment. Once the EOIs have been received by the Tenders Board, they will be opened at its December 19 meeting.

The successful interests of the RFP upon payment of a non-refundable registration fee of $10,000 are expected to submit technical and financial proposals to the Tenders Board of the Ministry of Finance by February 28. The proposals will then be evaluated by the review/selection team and a preferred bidder will be selected by March 15, 2018.

“The EOI is a pre-qualification state for the submission of a request for proposal from suitably qualified private sector providers with the technical and financial ability to manage and operate the landfill. The goal is to provide for an environmentally sound management system for solid waste management at the landfill,” said Mr Ferreira.

The successful bidder will be responsible for matters such as financing waste management operations; operation of the landfill site; generating revenue from waste management services and effective risks mitigation strategies. “We are not fettering the creativity of the proposals. Whatever they put forward will be evaluated,” said Mr Ferreira.

The Minnis administration, upon taking office after the May 10 general election, cancelled the landfill tender process initiated by the former Christie administration just weeks before it was voted out. That RFP attracted two bids, one of which was from the 10-strong Bahamian consortium, Waste Resources Development Group (WRDG), and its financial partner, Providence Advisors.

Respondents had been given less than two weeks to submit a proposal.

Mr Ferreira noted the Christie administration had previously entered into an agreement with Renew Bahamas to operate the landfill. “The company officially took over on August 1, 2014 and its management was replete with challenges. The previous government found itself rescuing Renew from its woes by putting out fires, paying contractors and providing a loan to Renew to pay its Bahamian staff and service providers to keep the landfill in operation,” said Mr Ferreira.