Bugibba Square refurbishment: From €1.7 to €10.6 million

Aqra bil-Malti

A long-coming regeneration project of Bugibba’s main square has had project costs increased from €1.7 million to €10.6 million.

The project, administered by Infrastructure Malta announced in 2021, was awarded to the highest bidder at almost double the lowest bid price. Usually, procurement procedures dictate that the lowest bidder meeting the tender’s criteria is awarded the job.

The architects selected to design and manage the project are XYZ Architecture, led by former Labour Deputy Leader Daniel Micallef.

He resigned last summer following Labour’s troubling result at the polls, insisting he wanted to concentrate on his profession.

Over budget when no work has yet begun

In 2021, former Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo announced plans to refurbish Buġibba Square, which is relatively small but often frequented by tourists and locals. 

The Malta Tourism Authority (MTA) had applied for a permit in 2017 – four years earlier.

Bartolo announced at the time, during a press conference, that the project would cost some €1.7 million and be completed in 2022. No work was ever carried out.

Last week, Transport Minister Chris Bonett held another press conference at the same place as his former cabinet colleague.

This time, with bulldozers in the background, Bonnet announced the start of the square’s revamp. The difference is that this time, he announced that the project would cost €10 million.

The minister, who in the past was associated with irregular direct orders related to the building of a shooting range, did not explain how the refurbishing costs had increased dramatically.

He said that the project will include additional works in other streets leading into it in addition to the square.

Doubts on procurement

The tender related to the ongoing works, which are now expected to be completed by the summer of 2026, was issued by Infrastructure Malta.

The value of the tender was estimated at a maximum of €7 million. Five bidders participated, with bids varying from €5.8 million by Road Shredder JV to €10.2 million by RM Construction Ltd.

Usually, such tenders are awarded to the lowest bidder. In this case, the opposite happened.

The highest bidder, RM Construction, was awarded the tender at a much higher value than its estimated cost (€7 million). Usually, this would have led to the cancellation of the tender and a re-issue.

The winning bidder was awarded the tender for €10.6 million or €400,000 more than his bid.

So far, no explanation has been provided.