Region VIII bay cleanup consultancy draws 9

Nine companies have submitted expressions of interest to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for a consultancy to prepare a mathematical model and action plan to clean up pollution in Concepcion and San Vicente bays, in southern Chile's Region VIII, a project official from regional environment authority Corema told BNamericas. The project includes the construction of a 3-D dynamic, time-variable mathematical model that gives details of hydrodynamics, currents, dispersion and water quality in the two bays. An analysis of the companies' background documents has been sent to the IDB, with a decision regarding which companies will be invited to submitted offers expected in the coming weeks, said the official. The official did not release the names of the potential bidders due to confidentiality requirements, but according to bidding rules guidelines, participation was open to Japanese firms, or companies from other countries in consortium with a Japanese company. The bays suffer from runoffs from heavy industries, such as petrochemical and steel manufacturing; waste discharges from shipbuilding and fisheries; and domestic sewage from the neighboring port city of Talcahuano. Together with industry, municipal officials, port authorities and others responsible for the discharges, Corema will draw up a pollution-control program. In November, Chile's government and the IDB - on behalf of the Japanese Trust Fund for Consulting Services - inked a contract that greenlighted a US$1.2mn grant approved by the bank in September for the consultancy, which in total involves US$1.4mn.