In light of the corona crisis, trade organisation Netherlands Maritime Technology called on the Dutch government to speed up fleet renewal and maintenance projects for Rijkswaterstaat amongst others. According to a spokeswoman of the latter, the organisation is already considering possibilities.
Rijkswaterstaat is part of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management and responsible for the design, construction, management and maintenance of the main infrastructure facilities in the Netherlands.
When the corona virus broke out in the Netherlands, the organisation was quick to announce projects and work underway or planned will continue, provided that safety and quality are guaranteed. Ongoing and planned tenders will also continue. Alternatives are sought for parts of the procurement process that normally take place physically, to ensure that there are as few delays as possible.
‘We are committed to supporting the market. I will do everything within my power to ensure that the work continues as responsibly as possible,’ said Director-General Michèle Blom of Rijkswaterstaat in a letter that was sent to private parties after the Dutch government announced the first corona measures on 16 March.
Bringing work forward
And this is still the case today, emphasises Rijkswaterstaat. In addition, the organisation says it is aware of the call made by Netherlands Maritime Technology (NMT) last week.
NMT called upon Rijkswaterstaat and the Ministry of Defence to speed up upcoming fleet renewal and maintenance programmes to ensure more work for maritime companies during this difficult time. According to NMT, this would offer additional benefits as it will give the government earlier access to vessels already planned and requires no special aid.
‘We are indeed looking at options to bring fleet renewal and maintenance projects forward,’ a spokeswoman of Rijkswaterstaat tells SWZ|Maritime. ‘We are, however, still in an early phase of this process, so we cannot be any more specific yet about which projects we are considering.’
