Malta’s roads agency Infrastructure Malta has handed out a whopping 95 direct orders, worth a total of just over €10.4 million, in the first six months of this year.

Details published in the Government Gazette and analysed by The Malta Independent showed that Infrastructure Malta resorted to granting direct orders for a variety of different tasks, ranging from studies, to consultancy services, to landscaping, to the upgrade of a whole bypass.

A direct order is a process which effectively does away with the conventional tender procurement procedure: unlike in the case of a tender, a direct order can be given to anyone whom the contracting authority wishes.

There are instances where a direct order is justifiable: namely when no applications have been submitted in response to an open procedure, when the services – for artistic or technical reasons – can only be provided by a particular supplier, and when the works are deemed to be an emergency in nature.

In Infrastructure Malta’s case however, there is no such indication of any of the three aforementioned reasons – particularly the last one. The roads agency had previously listed “emergency works” as the justification for resorting to direct orders for certain works, but such a moniker does not appear in the most recent list.

The largest direct order awarded in the first six months of the year was worth just over €1 million and was awarded to the Environmental Landscapes Consortium (better known as ELC) for the embellishment of the Central Link project.

The same ELC was awarded another €108,103 for embellishment and landscaping at the Triq l-Għeriexem project in Rabat.

A host of well-known contractors also got their share of the cake in the past six months: Bonnici Brothers, for instance, received a direct order of €804,729 for works related to the aforementioned Triq l-Għeriexem project – a project which they had already received €3.7 million for in a tender.

The same Bonnici Brothers received €243,136 in a direct order for the construction of Groynes at Tal-Magħluq in Marsaxlokk along with other comparatively minor works which include repaving and resurfacing works.

Kosta JV meanwhile, a consortium including Polidano Brothers (iċ-Ċaqnu) and Philip Agius & Sons, was on the receiving end of €524,435 for the “upgrade of Canon Road bypass Phase II.” The same joint venture received another €456,426, €421,577, €155,998, and €63,734 across four other direct orders which were for works in roads in St. Paul’s Bay, Mtarfa, Żurrieq, and Sliema respectively.

This means that Kosta JV received €1.62 million in direct orders in the first six months of this year alone.

One company – Camray Co Ltd – received a €342,718 direct order for a task simply described as “structural works”, while another company called Dim & Co Ltd received €350,000 for works at Triq is-Serkin in Mosta.

The number of direct orders far outweigh the number of tenders which the authority awarded in this same period – 95 direct orders to 23 tenders – although the tenders hold more of a value overall owing to the presence of major projects such as a €7 million tender for the dredging of the Grand Harbour and another €3.8 million for the refurbishment of the Sally Port Promenade in Birgu.

The list of variations published in the same Government Gazette meanwhile also indicate that Infrastructure Malta’s tunnel rehabilitation programme has gone over budget by just over €650,000 – with Bifra JV being on the receiving end of a variation worth €652,215 for the project.

Bifra JV had won the €10 million contract “for tunnel improvement works at the vehicular tunnels in Triq Reġjonali, Santa Venera and Triq Mikiel Anton Vassalli, San Ġiljan, including energy efficient tunnel equipment.”

Infrastructure Malta had told this newsroom that works in the tunnels would be complete by June this year – however the completion date was later revised to September, and works are still ongoing today.

Answering questions by The Malta Independent on Sunday, IM said that during 2020 and the first half of 2021, it managed a capital budget exceeding €250 million, comprising national and EU funds. Through this outlay, Infrastructure Malta implements many infrastructural investments, including the upgrading of the country’s principal routes and junctions as specified in the 2025 Transport Master Plan, the introduction of new facilities for alternative modes of travel and the reconstruction of many residential, rural and other secondary roads. It is also responsible for the ongoing general maintenance and repairs of the arterial road network, several urban greening and afforestation projects as well as the maintenance and development of maritime infrastructure, including the country’s major ports.

This list of responsibilities requires the contracting of hundreds of local and international service providers and suppliers to implement different projects, ranging from emergency repairs of roads and coastal structures to the rebuilding of residential roads and multi-million upgrades such as the Central Link Project and the Kirkop Tunnels and Airport Intersection Project.

All Infrastructure Malta contractors are engaged through established procurement processes applicable for different situations and conditions, IM said. Approximately 90% of Infrastructure Malta’s €100 million plus capital expenditure for the first half of 2021 was disbursed following public calls for tenders or similar processes.

It is not always possible to issue calls for tenders for certain services, IM said. For example, among the contracts awarded by direct order, some are required for Infrastructure Malta to launch urgently required upgrades to quays and other coastal systems, to avoid causing extended safety risks to mariners, pedestrians and bathers. Moreover, such repairs can only take place during certain months of the year, depending on weather conditions and the seasonal use of these coastal structures. Similar situations necessitating emergency road reconstruction works are encountered when road conditions become dangerous to road users due to storm damages or other unforeseen circumstances.

In situations where direct orders are required, Infrastructure Malta ascertains affordability and value for money through several checks and balances, including, where possible, requesting quotations from different service providers or suppliers capable of providing the specified products or services. Such quotations are obtained within the limited timeframes available in each situation and contracts are awarded to the most affordable, technically compliant offer received.    

In other cases, direct orders and variations to contracts would be required for additional services to contractors of major projects to provide services which could not have been possibly foreseen during the planning stages. Such works may include additional reinforcement of weak road foundations, upgrades of existing pipelines and other underground networks requested by the utilities during implementation and requests for project modifications from local councils and other entities. Such variations are permissible and stipulated as part of the normal, long-established conditions of all works contracts. These conditions allow for variations of up to 50% of the original contract values to make sure that if any such unforeseen requirements are identified, works can continue without unnecessary delays.

For example, during the implementation of the Tunnels Rehabilitation Project, Infrastructure Malta was requested to lay new water pipelines and electricity cables beneath one of the tunnels’ carriageways. These trenching requirements were not known when the contract was awarded, necessitating part of the indicated variation. At the same time, Infrastructure Malta upgraded the asphalt used for the resurfacing of the four tunnels to the new, longer-lasting polymer-modified material that the agency started using in arterial Maltese roads in 2020. Infrastructure Malta had not yet introduced this type of asphalt in Malta when the tunnels’ project call for tenders was issued in 2019.

Having said that, variations to contracts do not necessarily mean that projects are exceeding their allocated budgets since applicable conditions also permit the cancellation of materials and services included in the same contracts, reducing the final amounts ordered and paid, IM said. Such situations arise when works originally included in a contract are replaced with other materials and services at lower costs, or when they are no longer required, due to unforeseen circumstances. 

Finally, direct orders are also adopted in situations where proprietary products or services are required, or when services are provided by other Government entities or companies that are already contracted by the Government for similar services at the same location. For example, Infrastructure Malta contracts Environmental Landscapes Consortium (ELC) for certain tree planting and landscaping works required for arterial road upgrades such as the Central Link Project. This consortium has been entrusted with the upkeep of landscaped areas (such as roundabouts and central strips) of the arterial road network through separate public-private partnership contracts with the Government of Malta since 2002. By contracting the planting of additional trees and other related works for Infrastructure Malta’s new landscaped areas in arterial roads to this consortium, the agency is avoiding the complications and additional costs of having more than one contractor looking after the landscaping of the same sites. ELC will then continue to take care of the new trees and shrubs in these arterial roads as part of its pre-existing contractual obligations.

Infrastructure Malta said it is committed to continue taking all necessary measures to ascertain cost-effectiveness and to maximise the returns on the Government’s unprecedented infrastructural investment. In certain situations, direct orders as permissible by applicable regulations are the best option to implement upgrades and repairs required to ensure that Malta’s public infrastructure continues to safely and effectively meet the requirements of its users.