Waste authority and energy company settle dispute over £1bn contract

A waste authority and an energy company have agreed to settle their dispute over the procurement of a £1bn-plus resource recovery contract.

News of the settlement between the Merseyside Waste Disposal Authority (MWDA) and Covanta comes days after a High Court judge, Mr Justice Coulson, granted the energy company an injunction preventing MWDA from entering into the contract with a SITA consortium.

Covanta had claimed that the procurement was legally flawed, raising concerns in particular about the tender evaluation process.

Mr Justice Coulson concluded that the factors in favour of granting the injunction ahead of a hearing into Covanta’s claim outweighed those factors in favour of refusing it.

The judge said the granting of an injunction for a relatively short time in the context of the case – the procurement has been running for a number of years and the contract is due to last 30-35 years – involved the least risk of injustice.

In a joint statement released today (18 October) the Merseyside Waste Disposal Authority and Covanta said: “Merseyside Waste Disposal Authority and Covanta Energy Limited are pleased to report that they have managed to reach an amicable settlement of their dispute.

“As a result, Covanta has agreed not to pursue its claim against MWDA.”

The waste authority and Covanta added that the terms of the settlement were confidential.

See also: The Merseyside Waste procurement injunction - lessons for public bodies by John Houlden and Patrick Parkin.