Halisi
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Imeandikwa na Mwandishi Wetu; Tarehe: 22nd December 2009
MCHAKATO wa kutafuta wazabuni kwa ajili ya kununua mitambo miwili ya kuzalisha umeme wa jumla ya megawati 160 itakayowekwa Dar es Salaam na Mwanza, imebidi urudiwe baada ya kubainika kwamba tathmini iliyofanywa haikuzingatia vigezo muhimu.
Mitambo hiyo inayotarajiwa kununuliwa na ambayo serikali imetoa miezi mitatu kwa mchakato wa kuinunua uwe umekamilika, ni megawati 100 utakaowekwa Dar es Salaam na wa megawati 60 utakaokuwa Mwanza.
Miongoni mwa vigezo ambavyo havikuzingatiwa, ni kile ambacho Waziri wa Nishati na Madini, William Ngeleja alisema ni kutojumuishwa kwa ukamilifu gharama za uendeshaji, kwa mtambo wa megawati 60, ambazo kwa wastani ni kubwa.
Pamoja na maelezo na ufafanuzi uliopatikana kwa barua na kupitia vikao kadhaa wizarani, ilikubalika kuwa tathmini ya Tanesco (Shirika la Umeme Tanzania) haikuzingatia vigezo vingine muhimu vya zabuni, Ngeleja alisema jana Dar es Salaam wakati akizungumza na waandishi wa habari.
Alisema uamuzi wa kurudia mchakato wa zabuni huo, umeepusha pia mwanya wa kuingiza mambo mengine ambayo hayakustahili katika kufanikisha suala hilo.
Mwaka 2006, wakati wa ukame nchini, serikali iliagiza mitambo ya dharura ya kufua umeme nchini, ambayo baadaye ilikuja kugundulika kuwepo na ukiukwaji wa taratibu katika uingizwaji wake na kuzaa kile ambacho kwa sasa ni maarufu kama sakata la Richmond, moja ya kampuni zilizoshinda zabuni za kuleta mitambo hiyo.
Ngeleja ambaye hata hivyo alisisitiza kwamba siyo uzembe wa Tanesco, alisema kwa kuzingatia umuhimu wa kupatikana mitambo hiyo haraka, shirika limeshauriwa kutumia vipengele muafaka chini ya Sheria ya Ununuzi wa Umma ya 2004 kuanza mchakato mara moja na kupata mkandarasi ndani ya miezi mitatu kuanzia sasa.
Alisema, Serikali imeamua ni busara zabuni kurudiwa kwa kuwataka wazabuni wote waliofuzu kwenye mchujo na kuthibitika kuwa wana uwezo wawasilishe takwimu za kuwezesha kufanyika thathmini ya gharama za ununuzi wa mitambo, ujenzi na uendeshaji.
Akielezea kilichojiri katika zabuni hiyo ya awali ambayo haikupitishwa, Ngeleja alisema kwa kuzingatia gharama za uendeshaji wa mitambo ya uzalishaji umeme, Tanesco iliishauri serikali ifikirie na kufadhili ununuzi wa mitambo hiyo ya Mwanza na Dar es Salaam.
Serikali ilikubali kulipia gharama za kuinunua. Aprili 21, mwaka huu, ilitangazwa zabuni kupitia magazeti huku makisio ya Tanesco kuhusu gharama za miradi hiyo ikiwa takribani Sh bilioni 267.
Tarehe ya mwisho ya kurudisha makabrasha ya zabuni Tanesco, ilikuwa Juni 6, mwaka huu, lakini muda ukaongezwa hadi Julai 3, ili kutoa muda wa kutosha kwa wazabuni kukamilisha makabrasha husika.
Ngeleja alisema wazabuni 30 walinunua makabrasha ya zabuni kwa ajili ya mitambo ya Dar es Salaam na wazabuni 28 kwa ajili ya mitambo ya Mwanza.
Hata hivyo waliorudisha makabrasha yaliyokamilika kujazwa walifikia watano kwa mitambo ya Dar es Salaam ya megawati 100 na wanne kwa mitambo ya megawati 60, alisema na kuongeza kuwa matokeo ya tathmini ya zabuni yaliwasilishwa wizarani Septemba 10, mwaka huu.
Baada ya kutafakari ripoti ya Tanesco, Ngeleje alisema Oktoba 4, mwaka huu, wizara iliomba ufafanuzi kutoka shirika hilo kuhusu masuala kadhaa hasa gharama za uendeshaji zikiwemo mafuta na vipuri kwa umri wa mitambo unaokisiwa kuwa wa miaka 30.
Kwa upande wa mitambo ya Dar es Salaam, alisema zabuni ya Tanesco ilielekeza kuhitajika mitambo ya megawati 100 ya kutumia gesi asili, lakini mzabuni aliyependekezwa angeleta mitambo yenye uwezo wa megawati 130, kiasi ambacho hakikuwa katika makadirio ya bajeti, jambo lililochangia pia zabuni kurudiwa.
Alipoulizwa na waandishi wa habari iwapo kulikuwa na uzembe ndani ya Tanesco kiasi cha kushindwa kubaini kasoro hizo, Ngeleja alisema ni upungufu wa kawaida.
Aidha, alisisitiza mitambo hiyo italetwa mara moja baada ya kipindi hicho cha miezi mitatu kilichotolewa.
Alisema haitasubiri kuleta mitambo yote kwa pamoja; badala yake, itakayokuwa imekamilika hata ikiwa michache italetwa mara moja.
Uamuzi wa kuleta mitambo hiyo ya megawati 160, ulitokana na tathmini iliyofanywa na Tanesco mwanzoni mwa mwaka huu kuhusu hali ya uzalishaji wa umeme nchini. Ilithibitika kuwa mfumo wa uzalishaji umeme haukidhi mahitaji na kwamba unahitaji megawati zisizopungua 160 haraka iwezekanavyo.
Katika hatua nyingine, Waziri Ngeleja aliwaambia waandishi wa habari kwamba hali ya upatikanaji wa bidhaa za petroli unaridhisha na usambazaji wake unaendelea vizuri.
Ilianza hivi:
A new Richmond is coming...
THISDAY REPORTER
Dar es Salaam
CERTAIN businessmen-cum-politicians implicated in the infamous Richmond deal are now chasing up two brand-new contracts worth more than $100m (approx. 140bn/-) from the state-run Tanzania Electric Supply Company (TANESCO) for the construction of power generating plants in Dar es Salaam and Mwanza, THISDAY can reveal today.
The two separate energy contracts involve the procurement of a 100-megawatts, gas-fired power plant at Ubungo in Dar es Salaam, and the purchase of a 60MW power plant in Nyakato, Mwanza, which will run on heavy fuel oil.
Government officials have confirmed that the same people said to be behind the 2006 Richmond scandal are now well-positioned to be awarded the contracts using a different company name.
TANESCO received bids for both projects in June this year, but the tender process has since been shrouded in apparent secrecy and controversy.
It is understood that the group of Richmond-tainted businessmen-cum-politicians, working as a syndicate of sorts, submitted bids for the two contracts under another company name, ostensibly in an attempt to hide the identities of the real owners of the firm.
The 'syndicate' is said to be using the same network of government officials who facilitated the Richmond deal, to ensure it stays ahead in the race to land the latest contracts.
"A new Richmond is coming...," a senior government official familiar with the latest TANESCO tenders told THISDAY.
According to government insiders, the bids submitted by the 'syndicate' for the contracts were inflated by more than $30m (approx. 40bn/-).
"These people received inside information on the tenders, and submitted bids for both. In fact, there are reports going around that both contracts have already been awarded to the same people who were behind the Richmond scandal," said the senior government official.
The 'syndicate' is said to have been doing lots of behind-the-scenes maneuvering since early this year to land the new contracts.
"These people have the audacity and dastardly courage to repeat the same methods of fraud, misrepresentation of facts, bribery and what-have-you that they deployed to secure the Richmond contract, this time around as well," said the government official.
Under tender number PA/001/09/HQ/W/016, TANESCO invited bids for the "supply, installation, testing and commissioning" of the emergency,gas-based 100MW power generation plant in Dar es Salaam, on a turn-key basis.
A turn-key project is a type of project that is constructed by a developer and sold or turned over to a buyer (in this case, TANESCO) in a ready-to-use condition.
On the other hand, tender number PA/001/09/HQ/W/018 involves the supply, installation, testing and commissioning of a 60MW power plant in Nyakato, Mwanza, that will use dual-heavy fuel oil for power generation. The proposed Mwanza power plant is also a turn-key project.
According to our government sources, the bid winner(s) for both projects was expected to be picked on the basis of experience, technical capacity, fulfillment of tender requirements, and other such aspects.
But the word is now out that the one company already awarded both contracts...has never worked in Tanzania before, nor does it have any power generation experience in the whole of Sub-Saharan Africa," the sources said.
Contacted for comment, the Minister for Energy and Minerals, William Ngeleja, asserted that the TANESCO tender board is still in the process of assessing bids from various companies for the two tenders, and no formal decision has been made so far on the bid winner or winners.
It's too early to comment on this matter now because the tender process is still in the early stages...," the minister told THISDAY.
The official deadline for submission of bids for the two tenders expired on June 5 this year, meaning that TANESCO has been processing the bids for almost six months now.
Source: THISDAY, November 30, 2009
