WMA Spends Rs 1 Billion on Sewerage Project Again at Grand Baie

The Wastewater Management Authority (WMA) is set to award a new contract worth Rs 300 million for the Grand Baie Sewerage Project. Since 2019, a total of Rs 728 million has already been invested in the project.

The WMA has already disbursed Rs 600,053,201.54 to the joint venture between Henan Water & Power Engineering & Consulting Co. Ltd and Anhui Shui’an Construction Group Co. Ltd.

The partnership was signed in 2019 and was initially expected to be completed by 2023.

However, in 2022, the project was abandoned due to financial constraints faced by the construction company, citing rising costs of materials and labor as the main reason.

Apart from the Rs 600 million already spent, additional amounts were also paid out to various entities under the project.

These include Rs 124,804,509.90 to GIBB (Mauritius) Ltd, Nihon Studio Consultants (Japan) Co. Ltd, and Jacobs Engineering (UK), as well as Rs 3,763,835 to Transinvest Construction Ltd.

The abandonment of the project by the joint venture between Henan Water & Power Engineering & Consulting Co. Ltd and Anhui Shui’an Construction Group Co. Ltd necessitated extensive rehabilitation works, which were carried out progressively, lot by lot.

These works included civil, mechanical, and electrical interventions aimed at securing sites and finalizing critical tasks before demobilization of the team.

Tenders

Onix Co Ltd has proposed a contract worth Rs 322,191,714, but its bid faces difficulties as the original guarantee was not received by the Central Procurement Board by the time and date of submission of bids.

Serveng Ltd has offered a bid of Rs 294,973,586.25, which is the most financially competitive offer. Sotravic Ltée has proposed a bid of Rs 405,778,831.00, which is the highest among the three offers.

Criticism from Opposition Leader

Mahen Gungapersad, a member of the opposition Parti Travailliste (PTr) representing the Grand-Baie/Poudre d’Or constituency, had raised this issue in Parliament in 2023 and expressed strong criticism over how the project was handled.

He added that there was poor planning and management leading to delays and persistent problems for residents.

According to him, residents are continuing to suffer due to the non-realization of this essential project. “The residents need it. There was a budget allocation for this purpose, but nothing was done,” he said before adding: “Are we about to throw more money at it? Is there accountability for the poor management of this project?”

Prioritized Rehabilitation Works

To secure sites and ensure progress on the project, prioritized rehabilitation works were undertaken. Key components of these works include:

• Backfilling incomplete deep trenches: This includes both street gutters and pumping station sites.
• Fixing horizontal metal frames and covers: These installations were carried out at two pumping station sites.
• Renovation of private premises: This concerned areas where house connection works were ongoing.
• Installation of peripheral fences and gates: These works were carried out on pumping station sites.

These rehabilitation works aimed to secure sites and complete critical tasks before demobilization of the team.

Source: Defi Media