Sao Paulo's Federal Audit Court (TCE/SP), Brazil, has suspended the tender processes for the Manuá water supply PPP project and the Santo André water & waste PPP project.

TCE/SP suspended both contracts after the water company of the state of Sao Paulo (SABESP) presented complaints regarding the tender documents.

We published on September 28th that the state's audit court had requested tender information from the local water company Serviço Municipal de Saneamento Ambiental de Santo André (SEMASA) to review the Santo André water & waste concession. The deadline to submit offers was 10 October.

The concession would have involved the operation and maintenance (O&M) of Santo André water supply and wastewater systems. Additionally, the preferred bidder will be responsible for the O&M of the new water treatment plant currently under construction and for the management of the physical losses in the city's waterworks network.

The concession contract would have had a period of 35 years and its value was estimated at R$600 million (US$150.8 million). Foz do Brasil, a subsidiary of Odebrecht, had developed feasibility studies for the concession.

The other project suspended by the state's audit court has been the Manuá water supply concession. The objective of the project was to reduce and control water losses of the city water supply system. Two companies were involved in structuring the project: Odebrecht Environmental and Contern.