A fresh call for tenders has been issued for the remainder of the Dock 1 project, pushing the completion date back a year to around the summer of 2013.
The government is seeing the forfeiture of nearly €1 million in bank guarantees
The setback was caused by the sacking of an Italian contractor over delays.
Marinelli Costruzioni SpA is being sued for abandoning the project, which was meant to have been completed by this month.
In the meantime, residents and visitors have to put up with clouds of dust and unfinished roads.
An Infrastructure Ministry spokesman said a fresh call for tenders had now been made for the remaining works on the Cospicua dock.
Although the completion date has been postponed, the budget has not changed and total spending on the project will not surpass the original budget of €3.8 million, he said.
The Dock 1 embellishment project was announced in February 2008 when the government applied for EU funds, which were approved later that year.
A call for tenders was issued in May 2010 and, of the four bidders, the contract went to Marinelli Construzioni SpA, which submitted the cheapest offer.
Work started in January 2011 and was meant to have been wrapped up this month.
Last March, Transport Minister Austin Gatt sacked the contractor for “unacceptable delays” and a fortnight later initiated legal proceedings against the firm over breach of contract.
The government is seeking the forfeiture of nearly €1 million in bank guarantees.
A spokesman said the government issued a number of calls for tenders so as not to miss out on EU funds that have been earmarked for this project. These were reorganised into “packages” by order of priority.
One call covers works on the quay by Dock 1 and those around the Cospicua Regatta Club.
“These works were given top priority as they are adjacent to public areas in Cospicua and are also a continuation ofthe Xatt ir-Risq project, which is nearing completion,” the spokesman said.
The Contracts Department is expected to award tenders by the end of this July, with completion of works foreseen between July and September 2013.
The Dock 1 project is aimed at redesigning the public areas and converting the site into a recreational and leisure space, improving access both from the Vittoriosa side as well as Cospicua.