JOHANNESBURG– South African Water and Sanitation Minister Nomvula Mokonyane has vehemently denied reports that her department is planning to award a multi-billion-Rand water project to a hand-picked Chinese company.

Media reports over the weekend say the Water and Sanitation Department wants to disregard tender procedures by awarding the 20 billion Rand (about 1.5 billion US dollars) Umzimvubu Water Project tender to the company.

The National Treasury and Parliament had previously warned the department that any deviation from set tender procedures would be considered irregular.

The project, to be implemented in Eastern Cape Province, includes the construction of two dams and a hydro-electric power plant.

Mokonyane told the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) on Monday: This is a government-to-government project. We want Treasury to make it go out for public comment. It is not the issuing of a tender.

“It will go for public comment that there’s an agreement that this is what the South African government and the Chinese government are putting for the future development, then when the money is secured, tenders will begin to come and the tenders will be in the interest of the people of South Africa.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK