The deal was confirmed at a meeting last week, and is expected to be finalised in the coming days following a ‘standstill period’ when the decision is open to challenge.
The five-year contract, which has an option for a further two year extension, will begin in June 2019 when the council’s current deal with Amey comes to an end.
Under the new contract, kerbside mixed recycling and garden waste will continue to be collected weekly, while residual waste will be collected fortnightly. The council expressed it was keen not to reduce collection frequencies, following the start of the new service.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Urbaser welcomed Dartford’s decision. He said: “We are pleased to be awarded the contract with Dartford borough council, which is an important stage in our development and strengthens our position in the South East”.
The contract award would represent further growth in the UK waste collections market for the Spanish-owned Urbaser.
The company, which has its UK division in Cheltenham, has added to its portfolio in recent years with contracts on behalf of North and East Hertfordshire councils, and most recently, Tunbridge Wells and Tonbridge & Malling borough councils – which was announced in October (see letsrecycle.com story).
Procurement
Finalising the decision in a cabinet meeting last week the council confirmed that there were an initial 22 expressions of interest when the contract was first put out for re-procurement in 2018. However, only two completed bids were submitted; these were from FCC Environment and Urbaser.
“Both submissions were analysed and scored in accordance with the bid documents provided.” The bids were marked against price and quality criteria, minutes from the meeting have suggested.
The meeting heard that both bids were “very close to each other” for both quality and price. It is understood the council looked favourably upon the quality aspect of the Urbaser bid.
The council recorded a 25.2% recycling rate in 2016/17, and has a population of around 98,000 residents.
Related Links
Urbaser
Dartford borough council
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