Three bids for billion-euro geriatric hospital tender

Three consortia comprising some of Malta’s big players in the healthcare and catering have submitted bids each totalling almost €2 billion for a new geriatric hospital in Luqa.

The tender submission process closed on Tuesday with Custodia Care JV submitting a bid for €1.79 billion, CareLink Medical Group a bid for €1.74 billion and Proxima JV a bid for €1.87 billion.

Custodia Care JV has as its lead partner, CareMalta Ltd, and Carerise Ltd as a partner. Both are offshoots of the Vassallo Group.

CareLink Medical Group has as its lead partner, Saint James Operations Ltd, operator of St James Hospital, and as a partner CPHCL Co. Ltd, from the Corinthia Group.

Prozima JV is made up of Malta Healthcare Caterers Ltd as lead partner and James Caterers Ltd as a partner. Both companies form part of the James Caterers Group.

The tender to build the hospital, which will go by the name Sir Temi Zammit, was published in April this year but government pushed the submission deadline to October from July after health authorities were overwhelmed with requests for clarifications.

The facility will be a 300-bed public hospital built on the grounds of St Vincent de Paul home for the elderly.

According to the tender documentation, the winning bidder will build the hospital and operate it for 27 years. The capital expenditure will be recouped by the private company over the concession’s term by billing government for services rendered. The tender was valued at €1.4 billion. All three bids have overshot government’s estimation.

The hospital will be expected to offer in-patient medical care for elderly people, who do not require treatment at an acute general hospital but require medical care unavailable in a home. Tender documentation shows that the stated aim of the hospital will be to alleviate pressure from Mater Dei Hospital.

The hospital will consist of an admission area with 12 cubicles that will be managed and administered by the government, and 12 wards with a minimum of 24 beds each operated and managed by the private company awarded the contract.

The winning bidder will be expected to finish construction works and start operating the wards, 30 months from the issue of all permits. The company will manage and operate the hospital wards for 27 years and six months.

Tender documentation shows that bidders will be expected to factor in any capital expenditure incurred during the first phase into the overall financial offer.