Four of the six companies bidding to privatize liquor distribution and warehousing were shortlisted Friday, including the province’s biggest private bonded liquor warehouse.
A committee of Citizens’ Services Ministry bureaucrats and Liquor Distribution Branch executives shortlisted:
- ContainerWorld;
- Exel;
- Kuehne + Nagel; and
- Metro Supply Chain Group.
A successful proponent is expected to be chosen by October and the contract signed by March 2013.
Hillebrand Westlink and Schenker of Canada did not make the cut. The government originally said the shortlist would be capped at three.
“There was basically a tie for third place and the committee had a discussion back and forth and decided that it would be most fair to allow four proponents to come forward instead of the three we planned for,” Citizens’ Services Minister Margaret MacDiarmid said on a Friday media conference call.
MacDiarmid said the proposals were considered individually and then ranked semi-anonymously.
“The chair was aware of which company was which, and one other person, but the rest of the evaluation committee was not,” MacDiarmid said.
ContainerWorld is based in a 600,000 square foot warehouse on Port Metro Vancouver’s logistics campus in Richmond and has a business relationship with Giorgio Gori, an Italian company 100% owned by Deutsche Post DHL. Deutsche Post DHL also owns Exel. ContainerWorld is the biggest player in the LDB’s pre-distribution program, which will be phased out when a private warehouser is chosen.
According to the October 6, 2009, “Project Last Spike” internal Exel memo obtained by Business in Vancouver, Exel pondered an acquisition of ContainerWorld to win the contract.
“Giorgio Gori does not have an ownership stake in ContainerWorld, but has a long standing relationship where it is understood that at some point they would purchase ContainerWorld,” the memo said. “Exel could use this avenue to negotiate a reasonable deal with (ContainerWorld owner) Dennis Chrismas.”
Asked what assurances the government has that all bidders are working independently, MacDiarmid said: “In terms of the business relationships between the different companies, I don’t have knowledge of that, but that really hasn’t been part of the process as I understand it.”
The government-appointed fairness monitor, George MacAuley, had no complaints about the process in a letter submitted to government, she said.
NDP caucus chair Shane Simpson told BIV last month that MacAuley’s scope of work is too narrow to ensure the process is not tainted.
“At this point we’re not thinking of including anyone else with respect to monitoring the fairness,” MacDiarmid said.
John Ellis, Schenker’s regional director of business development, was disappointed with the outcome and called the process “very straightforward.” However, he declined to say whether it was fair for all bidders.
“I can't comment on stuff like that, I'm still under confidentiality,” Ellis said.
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