Labour keeps up pressure over Delimara subcontractors

The government should inform the public whether it has investigated the suppliers of the Delimara power station extension for not declaring that its subcontractors were tainted by corruption allegations, the Labour Party insisted yesterday.

Labour spokesman on finance Charles Mangion said BWSC, the Danish company that won the €220 million contract for the extension, was duty bound to disclose whether its subcontractors had corruption charges levelled against them.

According to the tendering process, BWSC could be fined up to 20 per cent of the contract value for failing to supply true information.

Dr Mangion added that, according to foreign media reports, two of BWSC's subcontractors - Siemens and ABB Ltd - were involved in serious corruption cases.

This, he claimed, explained why BWSC did not want the government to disclose its subcontractors when the government tabled the contract in Parliament.

Allegations of corruption in the Delimara tender adjudication were first made by the opposition about a year ago. The Auditor General found no hard evidence of corruption but noted serious administrative shortcomings.

Labour insisted the contract be made public for all to see and the government tabled it after getting the go-ahead from BWSC quoting contractual clauses. The Danish company had asked that certain details, including the list of subcontractors, be kept confidential.

Dr Mangion yesterday said that, in allocating the contract, the government had failed to maintain "due diligence" since it relied blindly on the assurances given by BWSC regarding its subcontractors. He added that, in the name of accountability, the government should look into whether BWSC had misled the government during the tendering process.

Reacting, the Finance Ministry said Dr Mangion was trying to misinterpret the conclusions reached in the Auditor General's report that had found no irregularities in the tender adjudication process.