The collateral damages from black political money of Siemens and contracts worth of million euros that remain stuck, expand from traffic lights to metro and OSE trains. Since 2008 the contests for 7 new stations in Elliniko, Haidari and Peristeri, which will service 500.000 daily passengers, have frozen!
Also, in about a month, the contract agreement for traffic light maintenance with Alktir is closing, another privileged area for Siemens and if there isn’t a new contest 1.200 lights in Attica are in danger of switching off.
In the middle of fall the ministry began the tactic of broken contracts wanting to secure the continuation in maintenance. In one of these «small» contests Siemens came down with Signalbau Huber, another German company, which was pushed aside for technical reasons leaving the first company alone. The ministry was forced to cancel the project, recently re-auction it and wait for the outcome.
In the Athens metro the company’s ghost has cost much in the development of the project due to the denial of two ministers (Giorgos Souflias initially and Reppas now) to sign the contract for electro-mechanical systems of 45mil euros. Without it the safe movement of the metro trains is not possible.
«We re waiting for clarifications from the ministry to move on with the projects as the signaling contract is the only crucial point left to complete all the work» said at protothema.gr the president of Attico Metro Hristos Tsitouras underlining that after the go from the government the contract would have to be verified by the board of the company and then pass from the audit conference. They have estimated that even if it is signed tomorrow it will take 6-12 months to complete the project but according to Tsitouras they will try to shrink it down to 9-10 months.
Under normal conditions the new network would have been gradually ready until the summer of 2011!
The construction sights leave but the trains remain docked
And while in Attico metro they are waiting for the new stations to unblock, the work in the metro moves so fast that in a while the construction sights will leave but the stations will remain locked.
It’s characteristic that in many stations like Peristeri the validating machines are in place and the restructuring of a 9 acre square is finished. The parking spaces are nearly finished in Haidari while the restoration of the environment in Elliniko gives the impression that the stations will soon be open.
Progress is marked in the extensions towards Piraeus since during the week it is expected that the auction issues will be handed to the contesters to move to contest to its second phase. The extensions are dragging from 2008 as Aktor had the bad luck to team up with Siemens for this 515mil contract. The synthesis of the consortium poked Mihaniki of Prodromos Emfietzoglou that found a chance to report the competition to the EC. But the case is now closed.
Signaling problems are also encountered by the rail network and due to Siemens again, the contract for wireless communications is frozen (GSMAR) for which the German company is asking for 7mil euro compensation!
Reassessment and Integrity Covenants
The government seems determined to untie the Gordian knot that keeps crucial projects in the transport sector blocked, after the end of the Examination Committee. Towards this end they are planning to re-evaluate the competitions won by Siemens and enlist the Integrity Covenant that will apply to all future contests. It means that al contesters will not bribe or use unclean methods during the auction, a method supported around the world by the German company itself and used by countries with increased levels of corruption such as Colombia, Paraguay and Indonesia!
The Infrastructure minister Dimitris Reppas will include it to the new bill for public projects.
Two major contests for traffic lights at 7,5mil euros
The situation remains chaotic in another crucial project for the capital that is the function and maintenance of 1.200 signaling lights.
The problem rose at the beginning of the previous summer when the contract with Siemens ended and the ministry recruited lesser contracts to avoid a total blackout. But despite the fact that there is a solution for the maintenance of non-specialized equipment from indigenous companies, in the part of the software which is the «brains» of the signaling lights systems, the German company has the first and last word.
Excluding 450 spots that are controlled by the ministries maintenance crews, the 75% of lights is controlled by Siemens and the 25% by Signalbau Huber.
Besides the new contest that will have to go public to take the place of Alktir, two more major contests are on. One, at 5,5mil, is about the maintenance of non- specialized equipment and is at the stage of awarding but temporarily blocked due to objections. And the other at 2mil euros is about the software and got public last Thursday.
Also, in about a month, the contract agreement for traffic light maintenance with Alktir is closing, another privileged area for Siemens and if there isn’t a new contest 1.200 lights in Attica are in danger of switching off.
In the middle of fall the ministry began the tactic of broken contracts wanting to secure the continuation in maintenance. In one of these «small» contests Siemens came down with Signalbau Huber, another German company, which was pushed aside for technical reasons leaving the first company alone. The ministry was forced to cancel the project, recently re-auction it and wait for the outcome.
In the Athens metro the company’s ghost has cost much in the development of the project due to the denial of two ministers (Giorgos Souflias initially and Reppas now) to sign the contract for electro-mechanical systems of 45mil euros. Without it the safe movement of the metro trains is not possible.
«We re waiting for clarifications from the ministry to move on with the projects as the signaling contract is the only crucial point left to complete all the work» said at protothema.gr the president of Attico Metro Hristos Tsitouras underlining that after the go from the government the contract would have to be verified by the board of the company and then pass from the audit conference. They have estimated that even if it is signed tomorrow it will take 6-12 months to complete the project but according to Tsitouras they will try to shrink it down to 9-10 months.
Under normal conditions the new network would have been gradually ready until the summer of 2011!
The construction sights leave but the trains remain docked
And while in Attico metro they are waiting for the new stations to unblock, the work in the metro moves so fast that in a while the construction sights will leave but the stations will remain locked.
It’s characteristic that in many stations like Peristeri the validating machines are in place and the restructuring of a 9 acre square is finished. The parking spaces are nearly finished in Haidari while the restoration of the environment in Elliniko gives the impression that the stations will soon be open.
Progress is marked in the extensions towards Piraeus since during the week it is expected that the auction issues will be handed to the contesters to move to contest to its second phase. The extensions are dragging from 2008 as Aktor had the bad luck to team up with Siemens for this 515mil contract. The synthesis of the consortium poked Mihaniki of Prodromos Emfietzoglou that found a chance to report the competition to the EC. But the case is now closed.
Signaling problems are also encountered by the rail network and due to Siemens again, the contract for wireless communications is frozen (GSMAR) for which the German company is asking for 7mil euro compensation!
Reassessment and Integrity Covenants
The government seems determined to untie the Gordian knot that keeps crucial projects in the transport sector blocked, after the end of the Examination Committee. Towards this end they are planning to re-evaluate the competitions won by Siemens and enlist the Integrity Covenant that will apply to all future contests. It means that al contesters will not bribe or use unclean methods during the auction, a method supported around the world by the German company itself and used by countries with increased levels of corruption such as Colombia, Paraguay and Indonesia!
The Infrastructure minister Dimitris Reppas will include it to the new bill for public projects.
Two major contests for traffic lights at 7,5mil euros
The situation remains chaotic in another crucial project for the capital that is the function and maintenance of 1.200 signaling lights.
The problem rose at the beginning of the previous summer when the contract with Siemens ended and the ministry recruited lesser contracts to avoid a total blackout. But despite the fact that there is a solution for the maintenance of non-specialized equipment from indigenous companies, in the part of the software which is the «brains» of the signaling lights systems, the German company has the first and last word.
Excluding 450 spots that are controlled by the ministries maintenance crews, the 75% of lights is controlled by Siemens and the 25% by Signalbau Huber.
Besides the new contest that will have to go public to take the place of Alktir, two more major contests are on. One, at 5,5mil, is about the maintenance of non- specialized equipment and is at the stage of awarding but temporarily blocked due to objections. And the other at 2mil euros is about the software and got public last Thursday.
