SXMElections.com

SZV receives bids from engineering companies

St. Maarten News – Social insurance agency SZV received bids from four engineering companies to develop terms of reference for the new hospital. SZV says that construction could begin in the third quarter of this year and that the new facility would be ready in 2019.

Lievense, Independent Consulting Engineers (ICE), Arcadis and Royal HaskoningDHV have submitted bids and SZV accepted them on Monday for consideration.

Interim SZV-director Glen Carty thanked Henk de Zeeuw, managing director of KPMG for his help with the process so far. “SZV is looking for an engineering company to advise on the functional requirements, the development and cost and quality consulting,” Carty said in a press statement. “It is key that the new facilities are sustainable and able to host the growing population of St. Maarten and cater to the expansion of medical services.”

The four bids will be evaluated this week, followed by negotiations. The winning bid will be announced on February 19.

The second phase of the project consists of the preparation of the tender document for the design, construction and maintenance of the hospital.

“I am very pleased with SZV’s open approach towards the development of the new hospital,” Minister Emil Lee (Public health) stated in a reaction. “This will ensure that the people will get the best quality hospital for a competitive price and the open approach encourages the participation of other stakeholders.”

The minister said that transparency had already opened the possibility of financing from the Netherlands as well as structural cooperation with the French side. “Development of a state of the art hospital that is financially sustainable is a critical part of ensuring that all residents of St. Maarten have access to affordable and quality healthcare, close to home,” the minister said.