A new state-of-the-art building in Lija which Transport Malta should have started using as its headquarters this summer is still very much a construction site.
A contract signed last year laid down that the building had to be ready to move into by last July. But the transport watchdog’s 350 employees must wait.
When contacted about the delay, a Transport Malta spokesman said the building was partly ready and that employees should start moving this week.
Transport Malta signed a contract with a Ħalmann Vella Group subsidiary company, Sudvel Ltd, in connection with the site in question, paying €2 million a year
However, an on-site visit revealed a different picture. Cranes and building material could be seen all over the construction site.
“If they told you this building is ready to be used, they must really be dreaming,” one of the builders present said.
“We are still very far away from completion, and as you can see, we are still doing roofing works,” he added.
Following a request for proposals last year to lease 7,000 square metres of office space for up to 15 years, Transport Malta signed a contract with a Ħalmann Vella Group subsidiary company, Sudvel Ltd, in connection with the site in question, paying €2 million a year.
The Times of Malta enquired last November on what grounds the contract with Sudvel Ltd had been signed when it was evident that the July 2017 deadline, which was specified in the request for proposals, was not likely to be met. Transport Malta would not comment, saying “details were still to be finalised”.
The transport watchdog had to seek alternative premises, because the building it shares with the European Asylum Support Office in Marsa will be wholly used by the European Union agency due to its expansion plans.
Asked whether there had been a breach of contract due to the delay in works, a Transport Malta spokesman said the building was almost ready.
“Parts of the building in Lija are completed and finished, such that Transport Malta personnel will start relocating this week for a gradual handover of the building,” he said.
“This ensures continuity and creating the least inconvenience to staff and clients,” he said.
“Different directorates will gradually follow suit over a short period of time. The construction of the whole complex will be completed in the coming weeks,” the spokesman added.
Shortly after Labour returned to power in 2013, the transport watchdog signed a €500,000 annual lease agreement with the General Workers’ Union over a vacant property it owned in the A3 towers in Paola.
The building was handed over more than a year behind schedule.