By a correspondent
The Bulawayo City Council has cancelled the US$150 million solid waste-to-energy project contract with Pragma Leaf Consulting Zimbabwe citing a lack of commitment by the United Kingdom-based company.
BCC entered into an agreement with the company in 2018 and part of the arrangement was that Pragma Leaf Consulting Zimbabwe was to finance and kick-start operations within four months of the agreement.
The contractor was to mobilise resources and commence operations within 120 days of signing the contract.
According to a monthly council report for September, Bulawayo health services director Edwin Sibanda said nothing had been done since the signing of the contract.
“The contractor has been coming up with various excuses such as COVID-19 in 2019 and 2020 which they claimed it affected their movements and that of their funders,” he said.
Sibanda said it was only in April 2022 that the company responded by providing a Gnatt chart.
“Unfortunately, according to the Gnatt chart, the first step was to submit building plans, approval of plans, and build a material recovery facility (MRF) with the final commissioning of the facility in December 2022. It was noted that from the time of signing of the contract and the envisaged commissioning of the MRF it would have taken four years to commence instead of 120 days,” Sibanda is quoted in the report as he apprised the Health, Housing and Education Committee.
“This situation was not ideal as Council is faced with challenges in solid waste management and signing for this project was meant to solve these challenges… we continued engaging Pragma Leaf until they submitted the building plans which they do not seem to have the zeal to have the plans finalised or the project commencing.
“Furthermore, the scope of the project seems to have scaled down to a material recovery facility only for now and this will not have any impact on the current solid waste management challenges which the city is facing.”
Dr Sibanda’s recommendation to cancel the contract was then acceded to by the council.
