MANAGEMENT CONTRACT AMMAN

In order to overcome any operational deficiencies of its operations in Amman, WAJ entered into the preparation of a performance-based Management Contract for the water and wastewater services in Jordan’s capital. The World Bank sponsored project is part of a larger investment scheme that also contains extensive re-structuring measures for Amman’s water supply scheme.

After international tendering the consortium, composed of Suez-Lyonnaise des Eaux, Montgomery Watson and Arabtech-Jardaneh (LEMA), commenced its operations in mid-1999 for an initial period of some 4 years.

Monitoring of this first large scale private sector project was entrusted to a special unit, the Programme Management Unit, which also was assigned to manage the large capital investment measures for Amman’s water supply system.

STAFF

1) One project Manager (Engineer).
2) Two financial internal auditors.
3) Technical auditing, One Engineer and six supervisors.
4) Expatriate expert (consultant).

TASKS

Technical Monitoring:

Water distribution: Ensure operator compliance with water distribution request through regular site checks.
Maintenance:  Ensure operator commitment with maintenance standards in water and wastewater facilities through site checks.
Customer complaints records: Following up all complaints and check operator response quality and timeliness.                                                                                                                                Drinking Water and wastewater quality: Ensure compliance with Jordan standards through sampling results; check and compare them with contract documents.
Water quantities: Monitoring quantities pumped from individual resource.
Water projects: following up all activities related to projects under operator supervision and ensure their compliance with management contract.
Facilities Operation: following up operator commitment in issuing and applying instructions for operation, maintenance, and safety.
Emergency Plans: Approve and following up the operator emergency plans.
Standard Operation Procedures (SOP’s): Review and approve facilities and network’s SOP’s
Energy Management Plans: The operator has to submit plans for Energy saving, which has to be approved by MC.
Illegal Connections: Following up and ensure operator plans to discover and minimize the illegal connections.
Wastewater plants: Review all wastewater plants works and ensure their compliance with Jordan Standards.
Resources and wells: Review and follow up all water resources reports from quantity and quality point of view.
ZAI water treatment plant: Zai water is a major water resource in a service area of the operator in which we ensure operation, maintenance, quantities and quality.
Coordination: Coordinate with all WAJ departments for consultations and getting the approvals to facilitate the operator works.
External Audit: Share in the external audit sessions and review their reports from technical auditing side.
Inventory systems: Checking randomly the operator inventory systems to ensure efficiency.
Training: Review and approve training plans to ensure compliance with contract.
Safety: Approve general safety plans.
Maintenance: Review and approve the maintenance management systems.
Water meters: Ensure the replacement of old and damaged meters according to agreed plans.
Customers: Ensure the operator procedures for customer’s objections, new subscriptions and customers complaints.

Financial and Managerial Monitoring:

Annual Budgets: review and approve the operation and maintenance budget and any capital budgets needed to carry out the works.
Billing: Monitor the bill-issuing and money collection process in a timely manner.
Payments: Following up the operator payments process in WAJ and ensure receipt of money owed.
Other Parties payments: Monitoring the operator commitments toward other parties’ payments (e.g. JEPCO).
Procurement Policy: Ensure operator’s compliance with procurement, supplies and inventory (store).
Financial Reports: Study and analyze all financial reports received from the operator and the financial auditor related to annual budgets and incentives and issue comments and notes.
Coordination: Ensure proper coordination with all parties including WAJ for any financial matters and conciliations.
Human Resources: Ensure operator commitments toward all staff including staffing policies, incentives, and recruitment.

In achieving the above Management Contract (MC), the PMU held many meetings and workshops and even conferences to discuss options after the end of management contract, and prepared terms of reference (ToR) for the period after the end of the LEMA contract. These ToRs were submitted to USAID for evaluation and with a request for financing.