Big shots, including Tal-Franciz, submit offers for ‘affordable housing’ project

One of Malta’s largest contractors, construction magnate Anton Camilleri, known as Tal-Franciz, currently involved in the total transformation of St George’s Bay through his controversial Villa Rosa mega-project, is one of seven bidders vying to get heavily subsidised public land to build ‘affordable housing’ according to a dubious scheme issued by a Government-Church Foundation.

Camilleri – not generally associated with social projects – is competing with other major developers in the industry, also smelling a good business opportunity through the Foundation’s initiative.

The Foundation for Affordable Housing has released a brief press statement naming seven companies competing to develop four large plots into hundreds of apartments. However, they have not provided any details about which companies are interested in which plots, the specifics of their proposals, or the number of apartments each plans to build.

Questions sent by The Shift for this information were not answered.

The Shift has learned that some of Malta’s prominent figures in the construction industry have submitted their proposals. In addition to Tal-Franciz, the contenders include Bonnici Brothers, known for their close ties to Prime Minister Robert Abela, Carlo Stivala, who has separated from the family’s ST Group, and Schembri Barbros.

Other developers in the running are Vassallo Builders, part of the large Vassallo Group; Rhys Lee Buttigieg representing Green Buildings Solutions Ltd; and Mario Mercieca, Andre Cremona, and Justin Sammut, who are representing JAJ Contractors Ltd.

So far, the Foundation has not provided information on who is behind Eclipse JV – the only consortium that submitted an offer.

Through this initiative, the Foundation has shifted away from decades-long practices of how the Housing Authority managed social housing projects. It was entrusted with four large parcels of public land located in St. Julian’s, Kirkop, Fgura, and Marsascala, which will be converted into approximately 260 flats. These apartments are intended to be sold below market prices to assist individuals who struggle to access the private housing market.

Instead of constructing the units themselves and selling the apartments directly to qualifying buyers, the Foundation issued an expression of interest. This allows the Foundation to hand over these plots to developers who will then build and sell the apartments on the market at the agreed reduced prices.

Selected developers are expected to achieve higher profits from this deal than if they purchased the land themselves.

This initiative, along with the lack of transparency in its management, has fueled speculation that it is designed for certain contractors seeking to profit from public land.

Last week, in an uncommon display of public disapproval regarding the management of a government scheme, the Malta Development Association (MDA) filed a judicial protest calling for the withdrawal of the initiative. This lobbying group, which usually maintains a close relationship with the Labour administration, argued that the scheme is anti-social, lacks transparency, may involve illegal state aid, is anti-competitive, and seems to be influenced by a pre-arranged agreement with specific contractors.

The association strongly criticised Housing Minister Roderick Galdes for promoting this scheme, alleging that he is intervening in the sector for ulterior motives while destabilising the market.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Robert Abela and the Curia are defending the scheme.

It is not being excluded that the Malta Developers Association (MDA) will contest the scheme in Court.