FCC Environment is also thought to be bidding for the contract, which is valued at over £100 million and sees Elmbridge, Mole Valley, Surrey Heath and Woking district and borough councils team up to tender the service.
The joint waste collection and street cleansing contract, which is due to be awarded in autumn 2016, would initially see the successful bidder collect over a third of Surrey’s waste for a period of up to 10 years. However, this could be extended to a total of 24 years.
It is being tendered by the Surrey Waste Partnership, which has set up a framework allowing all 11 district and borough councils in the county to join the contract at a later stage, as well as the county council (see letsrecycle.com story).
Under the arrangement, the successful bidder would carry out alternate weekly collections of commingled dry recycling and residual waste, in addition to weekly food waste collections.
It is anticipated that the procurement could achieve combined savings of up to £2 million a year, as well as data to improve services and communication with residents.
Work on the project to date has included developing an inter-authority agreement, soft market testing with potential bidders, developing a procurement strategy and agreeing the contract specifications, before the opportunity was published to the market.
Dialogue
Dialogue sessions are scheduled to take place in September and October 2015 with submission of initial tenders by the five companies due to take place in April next year. Once the contract is awarded there will be a staggered start depending on when each council’s current contract ends.
The earliest to be in place will be in Elmbridge in June 2017, with the other three councils to follow over a two year period.
At present, Biffa provides waste collection services to Woking, Surrey Heath and Mole Valley councils, while Veolia has a waste collection and street cleansing contract with Elmbridge borough council.
A spokesman for Biffa Municipal said: “We are delighted to have received an invitation to tender for this opportunity with the Partnership. Biffa has had an operational presence in Surrey for many years, and we look forward to contributing positively to the process.”
SUEZ also confirmed it was in the running for the contract but said it could not comment further at this stage. FCC also declined to comment on the tender.
Value
Matt Smyth, chair of Surrey Waste Partnership’s officer group, added: “The four authorities are a strong committed partnership that is keen to achieve best value and service for its residents. They plan to take a collaborative approach to contract management, working with the successful contractor to develop and deliver the best service possible.”
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