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Dublin: 10 °C Wednesday 22 May, 2013

No deal to give tender for water meters to O’Brien firm, insists minister

Pat Rabbitte says reports that SiteServ has won the tender to install water meters in Irish homes are incorrect.

Image: Gregory Bull/AP

THE COMMUNICATIONS MINISTER Pat Rabbitte has said reports suggesting a firm recently acquired by Denis O’Brien has been awarded the contract to install domestic water meters are incorrect.

In response to written Dáil questions, Rabbitte said suggestions that SiteServ – a company acquired by an investment vehicle part-owned by O’Brien earlier this year – had been awarded the contract to fit water meters were premature.

It was reported over the weekend that the company, whose subsidiaries include Sierra, had been awarded the contract for the installation and maintenance of about one million meters in homes over the coming years.

Sierra already holds the contract to be the sole installer and maintenance body for domestic boilers for Bord Gáis Energy, which is to become the parent company of Irish Water.

In response to parliamentary questions from Richard Boyd Barrett and John Halligan, however, Rabbitte said the tendering process for Irish Water had not yet commenced.

“This process will be rolled out in the coming months in line with Public Procurement Guidelines. This will be an entirely new and separate procurement process,” Rabbitte said.

“Any existing contractual arrangements in place by BGÉ have no relevance whatsoever to the process of tendering for water meters.”

Shareholders in SiteServ, which owed about €150 million to the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (formerly Anglo Irish Bank), agreed last month to sell the company to O’Brien’s Millington investment vehicle for €45 million.

This move proved controversial, however, as it was reported that there were two other higher bids made for the company – while IBRC agreed to accept €50 million in repayment and to write off the remaining €100 million.

This was despite ordinary shareholders receiving just under €5 million as a result of the sale, though finance minister Michael Noonan said the Millington bid had been handled by independent bodies.

“The Board of Siteserv, as advised by KPMG Corporate Finance and Davy Corporate Finance, recommended the successful bid as representing the best return for IBRC,” Noonan said last month.

“The Board of the bank are satisfied that this is the case.”

Read: Plumbers’ association ‘ready to start work’ on installing water meters

More: Enda Kenny: We can’t guarantee water will not be cut off

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Comments (27 Comments)

  • Wat a scam ,we need these people out of goverment ,when when when will we learn??????????????????

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  • tim 08/05/12 #

    A blind man could see through this one,site serv offered for sale,French offered 60 million,o brein buys it for 45million,it’s nice to have the inside track eh Denis !now to sell water to the peasants.

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    • Enda the peoples hero and proud Irish man, went to New York with Dennis on his private jet for dinner with the head of Goldman Sachs. I wonder why? Was he wearing his Croagh Patrick Irish jersey to dinner, anyone know?

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  • Why the hell were two higher bids rejected in favour of o’briens company? We may not have had to write off a sickening 100 million (read: further burden the taxpayer). Somethings rotten round here, nothings changed.

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  • It’s incorrect in that it hasn’t happened yet. Watch this space….

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  • Denis O’Brien has become the Irish Murdoch, no competition here everything will go to O’Brien as he is to close to FG.

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  • This plan should be put on hold. We have not been shown that this metering will be efficient. Cost to be repaid in how many years? Water should be in the household charge. The government needs to stop and think. Fix the leaks first!!

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  • Why are they spending €500 million to install meters, charge each household a flat fee each year and pump that €500 million into job creation.

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  • The most sickening part of all this, i made a joke about this exact topic when Enda and O’Brien were pictured at the New York Stock Exchange… I got the usual thumbs down at the time from the FFg die-hards, who didnt appreciate my sense of humour… I really hope this story is a belated April fools joke :(

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  • Don’t forget that the National Lottery is also up for grabs…. The Lottery pays out less than 85% of the total ticket sales between charities and winnings … Thats 15-16% of a massive fund that will also be going up for grabs to the Governments favorite buyer … Lets see if O’Brien will get his hands on that money too. The Government are planning to sell that at a massive discount also… Great to see FFg alive and kicking.. The indo ran a story at the weekend, saying that even FFg backbenchers are getting p*ssed at Enda for being so chummy to Lowry…Guess which TD wants to build Irelands largest Casino… Well, that same TD won’t need to build a Casino if they get the National Lottery… Watch this space!!!!!!

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  • Me thinks something stinks

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  • Will Newstalk or Todayfm bring this up, don’t think so?

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  • When water becomes a revenue generating service the government will not be allowed to hold a monopoly under EU law …. therefore they will have to allow competition or put the service to tender in a privatisation deal …. remember ESAT Digifone??? Whoever the Minister for Water is at this point will get a hefty brown envelope for his signature on any deal. Michael lowry (Tipperary North) signed esat deal. Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny) will sign a water deal. Do you trust Phil Hogan more than you trust Michael Lowry? Denis O’Brien also owns Newstalk, Today FM, Dublin’s 98 (formerly 98FM), Spin 1038 and Spin South West. NO MORE CORRUPTION!! WATER IS A BASIC HUMAN NEED FOR LIFE – IT COMES FROM NATURE – IT CANNOT BE OWNED!! NO WATER CHARGE!! NO CORRUPT PRIVATISATION!!

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  • In the sprit of everyone have to self register and pay for the household tax, water meters should be sent to everyone in the country by post and people told to fit them themselves. Once this is done the contract for collecting the revenue and the profits with it can be given to whatever / company / person etc is in political favour.

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  • So much negativity here man! What’s wrong with politicians sharing the love between their friends? I mean come on, we are all connected, we are all one positive entity in this Universe. Lets try some positivity with a capital ‘P’ Okkkkkk? I also see nothing wrong with Enda our leader going for dinner and holidays to New York with Dennis Obrien. I mean come on man, its all about the love and keeping it real ok. 2012 is a new beginning my brothers and sisters, I for one will be voting yes in the upcoming treaty. We need to remain the heart of Europe and although love is the currency of the Universe, we need ECB money from those bank machines to keep flowing. I love you and Ireland deeply, I am so proud we do not protest or complain about human injustices and politicians weaknesses. We are truly the most enlightened understanding gentle beings in the Universe. Peace, Light and love to you all my European brothers and sisters, my Earth family!

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