A fresh attempt at privatising the Malta Shipyards’ superyachts facility was launched yesterday as the police continue investigating claims of attempted bribery surrounding the first call for interested bidders.
The Privatisation Unit said it was re-launching the sale because the government believed it represented an attractive business opportunity for prospective investors interested in further developing and operating such facilities.
The unit had issued a call for expressions of interest in November 2008 along with four parallel requests for proposals, one for each of the four facilities which made up Malta Shipyards Ltd.
The ship repair facility and Manoel Island yacht yard were sold but the privatisation of the steel fabrication and superyachts facilities were cancelled in February because “the bids were seen as being too low for the profitable facility”.
It later emerged that Finance Minister Tonio Fenech had been presented with allegations that there was an attempt by a bidder to bribe one of the government officials at the Privatisation Unit.
The minister had convened the board and confronted members with the allegations but they all denied any wrongdoing and it stopped there, until, in September, the matter was raised by the opposition in Parliament and the Prime Minister asked the police to investigate.
The Labour Party criticised the timing of the re-launch, saying the government should have waited for the conclusion of the investigation and pointing out that the government had made things more difficult for investigators by referring the matter to the police several months after allegations first surfaced.
The party noted that the probe centred around an official at a government agency, the chief executive of the Malta Investment Management Company (Mimcol), Mario Mizzi, who was questioned by the police over the claims.
Mr Mizzi, who is now suspended pending investigations, had filed a judicial protest holding former bidder and marine engineer Paul Cardona responsible for the claims.
Labour is insisting the government should not have proceeded before this was cleared.
It also accused the government of being incoherent when it launched a tendering process for the superyachts facility but failed to do so in the case of the White Rocks complex.
However, in its reaction, the Finance Ministry said the person who is being investigated was currently suspended so will not be involved in the new process.
The government plans to grant the superyacht facilities on a 30-year concession.
The site has two dedicated docks, including one which has a retractable cover, workshops and site offices.
The operation has grown steadily since being set up in 2003 and has secured large contracts including extensive refits on some of the world’s largest and best known superyachts.
The Privatisation Unit said interested investors could collect the necessary documentation to take part in the tendering process from its offices at Marsa industrial estate. The documentation will be made available against the signing of a confidentiality agreement and a payment of €5,000.
Requests for the confidentiality agreement and the tendering documentation are to be submitted to the Privatisation Unit via e-mail victoria-mary.wilson@gov.mt.