Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1541244
6 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 12 NOVEMBER 2025 NEWS ĦALEY XUEREB hxuereb@mediatoday.com.mt A collective of 194 artists including painters, ceramicists, bronzists, sculptors, photographers and others. The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta Maltese Association _______________________ 24th October to 14th November 2025 St John's Cavalier Monday to Saturday 10.00am to 6.00 pm Sundays 10.00 am to 1.00 pm Order of Malta National Art Exhibition "Xwejni" Mixed Media 67 x 96 cm Carmen Busuttil Court overturns tender award for Marsa Cultural Hub works and orders re-evaluation THE Court of Appeal has an- nulled a Public Contracts Review Board decision and the award of a major construction tender for works on the Marsa Arts and Cultural Hub, after finding that evaluators wrongly disqualified the lowest-priced bidder. The appeal was brought by Green Building Solutions Ltd (GBS) against Festivals Mal- ta Agency, the Contracts De- partment, and the consortium awarded the contract, SB Ma- rine Works JV. The tender, issued in December 2024, con- cerned demolition, excavation, and piling works for the new cultural hub in Marsa. The se- lection criterion was the lowest compliant offer. GBS had submitted a bid of €3.1 million, lower than the €3.39 million offer made by the successful bidder. However, the evaluation committee and the Review Board ruled GBS's bid non-compliant, citing con- cerns over the feasibility of the timeframes indicated in its work schedule and the in- clusion of works not expressly listed in the tender. In its judgment, the Court of Appeal, composed of Chief Justice Mark Chetcuti, Judge Robert G. Mangion and Judge Grazio Mercieca, held that the review board had misinterpret- ed the tender conditions. The court found that the twelve- month contract duration stat- ed in the tender documents was a maximum execution pe- riod, not a minimum. Disqual- ifying GBS for proposing to complete the works in less time was therefore incorrect. The court also ruled that the evaluation committee had overstepped its remit by car- rying out an assessment of the feasibility of the proposed timelines. Citing established procurement principles, the court noted that evaluators must assess whether the pro- gramme covers the required works and falls within the maximum timeframe, but not whether the programme is re- alistically achievable. Any sub- sequent failure to perform on time is addressed through con- tractual penalties and termina- tion mechanisms. The judges further held that GBS's inclusion of additional works beyond those expressly requested did not justify dis- qualification, as tender rules provide for exclusion only where the minimum required works are not met. Penalising a bidder for offering more than required breached the prin- ciples of transparency, equal treatment, and self-limitation. As a result, the court an- nulled both the review board's decision and the award of the contract. It ordered GBS's of- fer to be reinstated into the tender process and returned to the contracting authority for a new adjudication. The court al- so ordered Festivals Malta and the Contracts Department to refund GBS's deposit and pay the costs of the appeal. However, the court drew at- tention to the significant dif- ference between GBS's bid and the tender's estimated value of €3.97 million. It invited the evaluation committee to con- sider whether Regulation 243 on abnormally low tenders should be applied during the renewed assessment. Appeals court annuls tender award after evaluators wrongly disqualified the lowest-priced bidder The cultural hub development proposed on the site of the former Government Garage is set to occupy an area the size of nearly three football grounds