With a total of seven companies having been shortlisted for the Integrated Utilities Business System Strategic Partnership for Enemalta and the Water Services Corporation, British multi-billion euro multinational LogicaCMG is confident it has found the solution to Malta’s utility woes, foremost among which are theft and leakages from the water and electricity systems.
The new utility business systems, as called for in a tender issued by Enemalta, will replace infrastructural elements and support systems for both Enemalta and the Water Services Corporation.
The partnership will, for starters, provide for new control systems and a state-of-the-art billing process including a new water and electricity metering system for Malta’s households and businesses. The new system will allow Enemalta and the WSC to crack down on theft and leakages, which amount to close to 20 per cent of total water and electricity generated.
The contract, issued in November 2005, called for competent international companies to express their interest in a strategic partnership for the design, supply, implementation and operation of specified business processes and systems.
The contract, which will run for an initial period of five years, is currently in the RSP stage of the awarding process in which shortlisted bidders have been asked to present detailed proposals by the beginning of April.
Speaking to this newspaper yesterday, LogicaCMG business development director Ken Whittaker commented the company is well on track to meet the April deadline and that it is “working hard on a top-quality proposal.
“But with a total of seven shortlisted companies, it should be a tough decision and there will be a lot of work in selecting the winning bid.”
The company has been in discussions on the tender for over a year and has developed a “good team of local partners from the many good companies
in Malta”.
Mr Whittaker is confident that new technologies will improve the overall utility services to the public, as well as providing savings on high losses, incurred through theft and leakages, which represent a recurring and unnecessary expense for the government and consumer alike.
While the actual contract is multifaceted and envisages a complex requirement on the part of the bidding companies, the strategic partnership will see the winning company operating certain parts of the utility-providers’ businesses, mostly back office and billing operations, as well as supplying equipment.
Notably, LogicaCMG offers a number of “smart metering” solutions including the “Smartering” product, which uses a combination of power line carrier and radio technology to provide for two-way communications between utility headquarters and the water and electricity meters themselves.
LogicaCMG, Mr Whittaker explains, has looked at Malta’s situation in depth and it is confident it has come up with the ways and means to improve the Maltese situation and that “the investment needed will be covered by the savings accrued (from limiting theft, leaks and business losses).”
“We are confident that savings can be achieved from supply of new systems and back-office operations,” he adds.
Malta’s water and electricity systems have been shown to be rife with theft and leakages, which range far above the industry average of four to five per cent.
Speaking recently, Investments, Industry and IT Minister Austin Gatt explained how recent figures demonstrate that a total of 17.7 per cent of Malta’s generated electricity went missing – a figure that includes electricity lost through cables, substations and other technical faults.
Of the total, Dr Gatt estimates that that 12 to 14 per cent of electricity used in Malta is stolen and that Enemalta would save some Lm7-9 million if such theft were to be completely eradicated.
Over 2006, Enemalta carried out 250 meter inspections per week and found that seven per cent of meters had been tampered with.
LogicaCMG is a leader in IT services and employs 40,000 people across 41 countries. The multinational company provides business consulting, systems integration and IT and business process outsourcing across diverse markets including telecoms, financial services, energy and utilities, industry, distribution and transport and the public sector.
The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange, Euronext (Amsterdam) and is also traded on the Xternal List of the Nordic Exchange in Stockholm.
The company sees annual revenues in the region of £3 billion, is the eighth-largest IT services company in Europe and has over 40 years’ experience in IT services.