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Tag: Visionscape Sanitation Solutions

  • Lagos retains Fitch’s B+ rating despite Visionscape payments default

    GLOBAL credit rating agency Fitch Ratings has affirmed the positive economic ratings of Lagos State despite the missed contracted services payment by Visionscape Sanitation Solutions.

    The waste management agreement between the state and the waste managers did not work.

    In a statement,  the global credit rating agency  said the state’s B+/(AA+(ngn)/ ratings remained stable and unaffected by the default of the SPV Municipality Waste Management Contractors Limited (MWMCL) led by Visionscape, occasioned by the halt of the said contract and the subsequent resolution of the House of Assembly.

    SPV is a private consortium led by Visionscape Sanitation Solutions (Visionscape), a company mandated to manage Lagos’ waste collection and disposal.

    Early last month, the SPV was reported to have missed the semi-annual principal and coupon payments for about N800 million on the N4.85 billion tranche under MWMCL’s N50 billion medium term note programme.

    The bond was issued by MWMCL reportedly to raise funds to purchase recycling trucks and equipment, linking debt service to the proceeds coming from Lagos for the implementation of the waste recycling contract.

    Some market participants had deemed MWMCL’s default to imply also the default of Lagos, given the state’s irrevocable standing payment order (ISPO) whereby a stream of its own internally generated revenue was remitted to the SPV account for debt servicing.

    But the agency, in its opinion, said the ISPO, and similar arrangements in other countries, is a mechanism enhancing the predictability of payment flows from an administration, potentially enabling it to address liquidity stress by prioritizing the payment of certain liabilities.

    However, such a mechanism normally falls short of the senior, unconditional, and irrevocable features qualifying it as a solvency guarantee, that is, a guarantee of timely repayment of long-term financial liabilities, such as bonds and loans, over extended periods.

    “In short, the ISPO is seen as a commitment to set aside resources for debt service, making it a risk-mitigating factor in case of liquidity stress by an administration rather than a credit enhancement.

    “Fitch does not rate the defaulted bond and believes that it would not have been able to rate the state’s commitment towards Visionscape – underpinning the bond debt servicing – under its Public-Sector Counter-party Obligations in PPP Transactions Criteria. Fitch does not rate commercial liabilities, i. e. those arising from service provision, such as waste fees/utility bills.”

    Giving further details, Fitch said when the payments of commercial nature are recurrent amid the need to procure the service of an asset otherwise purchasable/funded via borrowing (that is hospital, energy, motorway, public transport infrastructure), Fitch tests the rate-ability of the commitment and cautions that the IGR of the grantor, Lagos State in this case, does not address the default risk on commercial, or quasi-debt arrangements.

    The agency added that since the commitment underlying the MWMCL bond may meet the rate-ability tests under its PPP counter-party obligation criteria as Lagos lacks the control of the asset, and that it is the grantee (Visionscape) that appears to have the option to put to the state the waste recycling trucks in case of contract termination, rather than the state having the control that will enable it to operate them at the end of the PPP arrangement if it so chooses, then the State Government could not be held liable.

    “Lagos reportedly committed itself to pay for a service but those payments were discontinued in 2018 once the waste collection halted and the State’s House of Assembly issued a subsequent resolution.

    “Under Fitch’s criteria, Lagos’ ratings are not impacted because the defaulted debt is not Lagos’ direct debt, as well as because its multi-annual commitment towards Visionscape is unlikely to qualify as a PPP counter-party obligation. This would make the credit quality of the bond and its issuer detached from that of Lagos,” Fitch said in the statement.

  • Lagos waste wars end as Visionscape, PSPs agree on working arrangement

    The court-ordered negotiation between Visionscape Sanitation Solutions and private sector participant (PSP) operators has ended as both parties shake hands and agree on terms of operations. The waste wars which resulted from disagreements over the Cleaner Lagos Initiative (CLI) saw PSP operators discontinuing residential waste collection in Lagos State. This led to gaps in service delivery making a mutually beneficial resolution imperative.

    This resolution comes after months of negotiations, and barely a week after the PSP operators opted to partner with Visionscape Sanitation Solutions to clear up the backlog of waste in the State.

    Speaking with the media after the exercise on Thursday, a representative from a contributing waste collection operator, Mr. Hafis Kasumu said: “We have decided to support the government in the initiative to get rid of the waste. And also, to partner with Visionscape. So, it is a partnership and we are doing it together.”

    The resolution will see the PSP operators, now referred to as waste collection operators (WCO), continue residential waste collection, while Visionscape Sanitation Solution deepens its work to develop the infrastructure needed to facilitate an effective integrated waste management system. One of these is the critical construction of engineered landfills across the state to prevent environmental disasters like the recent Olusosun dumpsite fire.

    Also highlighted in the new agreement is that Visionscape will serve as the central processing hub of municipal solid waste within Lagos State. The company will engage PSPs on long-term service arrangements and will pay them for their service.

    carry out any intervention required to fill service gaps in public areas.

    This new direction will ensure that all arms of the CLI is able to deliver optimal results that will raise Lagos State’s waste management process to globally acceptable standards.

    With countries like Rwanda already exploring e-waste management facility and commercial composting, it is essential that the State accelerates the development of its waste management infrastructure, which Visionscape has concession of. The company has reaffirmed its commitment to leading the concerted effort towards an environmentally sustainable Lagos State.

    This partnership is expected to start yielding visible results over the next few weeks.

    Read Also: Lagos, PSP operators, Visionscape resolve differences

  • Lagos, PSP operators, Visionscape resolve differences

    Lagos, PSP operators, Visionscape resolve differences

    The differences which gave rise to emergence of refuse across Lagos State over the implementation of a new waste management policy encapsulated in the Cleaner Lagos Initiative have been resolved, with all the key players agreeing to sheath their sword and collaborate in order to ensure cleaner, prosperous and healthier environment in the state.

    The resolve to collaborate was reached on Thursday at a meeting held between officials of the Lagos State Government, Visionscape Sanitation Solutions and Waste Collection Operators (WCOs), also known as Private Sector Participant (PSP) Operators.

    Speaking at the meeting, the State’s Commissioner for the Environment, Dr Babatunde Durosinmi-Etti said that government was interested in easing challenges being experienced in Waste Management at present by creating synergy between Visionscape and the WCOs in their spheres of operation, stressing that resolving the challenge in a mutually beneficial manner was the best approach.

    “Government more than ever believes in this partnership and that is why it has not only provided a facility of up to N2.5b with State Government guarantee, which PSP Operators could access to upscale their operations, but has also opened another channel through the Employment Trust Fund for loan facilities at reasonable interest of not more than 12% per annum”, he said.

    The Environment Commissioner stated that the Lagos State Government was determined to remove all bottlenecks hindering seamless waste disposal operations, adding that it was making the bold move of targeting a turn-around time of thirty minutes at the dumpsites by encouraging concerned stakeholders to create additional platform at the sites.

    He emphasized that no efforts would be spared to return the dump sites to sanity by reducing the menace of indiscriminately parked trucks and scavengers, both of which add to the loss of time at the dump sites.

    On his part, Visionscape’s Chief Executive Officer, John Irvine, applauded the new found understanding between his company and the Waste Collection Operators and stated that challenges being experienced in domestic waste management in Lagos State had to do with the fact that the domestic waste operator was just in its first cycle of operation, meaning that it must contend with some teething problems.

    His words: “It is not unusual to face this kind of problems especially in the first cycle of operations. It takes some time to build the superstructures and to ameliorate the present hiccups; we are buying locally and taking steps to have waste container bins manufactured locally.”

    Speaking on behalf of the WCOs, Kasumu Afis Olasehinde reiterated their commitment to the success of the Cleaner Lagos Initiative and pledged to roll out more trucks to rid Lagos of Wastes’ black spots.

    “To show our total commitment to a cleaner, healthier and safer Lagos, we have not only resolved to work with the Government of Lagos State and the domestic waste operators as partners, we have also resolved to commence free Operations every Thursdays to mop up black spots in our respective areas” he said.

    It was agreed at the meeting that a seamless process should be put in place on how Visionscape and the PSPs will partner on the door-to-door collection of waste from March 1.

    It was also agreed that Visionscape would take the PSPs on a tour of the Epe Landfill, the first engineered landfill in West Africa.

    The meeting also agreed to set up a committee comprising all the stakeholders to ensure smooth operation of the project.

    Read Also: Saboteurs behind Lagos refuse, says Cleaner Lagos

  • ‘It’s too early to dismiss Cleaner Lagos Initiative as failure’

    ‘It’s too early to dismiss Cleaner Lagos Initiative as failure’

    A civil society group, Greater Lagos Youths ( GLY ), on Tuesday faulted the call for the termination of a contract signed by the Lagos State Government with an environmental utility group, Visionscape Sanitation Solutions, saying it was too early in the day to dismiss the Cleaner Lagos Initiative ( CLI ) as a failure.

    GLY, which is an amalgamation of over 60 youths’ groups drawn from across the 57 Local Government and Local Council Development Areas of Lagos State, said the call was not only misguided but hasty and irresponsible.    

    A group, Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN), had asked the State Government to terminate the contract with Visionscape, alleging unsatisfactory handling of waste in the State.

    But GLY, in a statement by its National President, Kayode Gbadamosi, condemned the position of the group, stating that it was pretending to serve the interest of the larger society, while in reality it was doing the hatchet job for it’s paymasters to service interests which were at variance with the health and sanity of Lagos State.

    According to GLY, “Let it be placed on record that we are not fooled by the call from this group which is akin to the voice of Jacob but the hand of Esau because the breeze has blown and we have seen the rump of the fowl. Also, it is not unlikely that the resurgence of heaps of waste across the State is the handiwork of saboteurs who have now being complemented by the irrational call for its termination.

    “For our information and education, Visionscape Sanitation Solutions is a tested and trusted environmental concern which has proved its mettle in its area of competence in over 13 countries across the globe, so what is this group talking about?”, GLY queried.

    The group said the CLI was introduced to address the challenges in the environmental sector with the focus of aligning the State with top cities in the world having effective and efficient waste management system. 

    “It is a known fact that the former waste management system in Lagos was fraught with a lot of drawbacks that is not in sync with the status of the state as a mega city by the deployment of outdated and faulty compactors which were always breaking down; the short supply of personnel, etc. All these hindered efficient waste management system and constituted environmental hazards across the state.

    “However, with the coming on board of Visionscape Sanitation Solutions, we are beginning to witness a breath of fresh air in the waste management system through the transformation of waste transfer loading stations across the state, beginning with the Tapa Transfer Loading Station while the one in Oshodi is nearing completion. The Ogudu Waste Depot has been completed and the company is currently working on the Epe Landfill, which will be the first Engineered Sanitary Landfill in West Africa, among others,” the group said.

  • Lagos to evacuate 5,000 tonnes of refuse daily to new Epe landfill

    Lagos to evacuate 5,000 tonnes of refuse daily to new Epe landfill

    Refuse dotting Lagos roads and in the city centre will soon be a thing of the past as the state government is set to evacuate 5,000 metric tonnes of waste daily to its new landfill in Epe.

    The state is set to carry out the exercise under a public/private partnership involving Visionscape Sanitation Solutions, under the Cleaner Lagos Initiative (CLI).

    Thomas Forgacs, Chief Operations Officer, Visionscape Sanitation Solutions, told newsmen of the plan during a media facility tour of the firm’s new refuse transfer loading station in Tapa, Lagos.

    The firm is working under the supervision of Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) which serves as a regulator for refuse management in the state.

    Forgacs said that refuse management would take a new dimension under the CLI where about 100 automated vehicles would be distributed within the next two weeks to various work teams to begin operation across the state.

    While making a demonstration of operations of the refuse collection trucks, he said that the equipment were all automated to guarantee speed and to track the activities of workmen in order to ensure efficiency of field operations.

    He said that some roads in the state were inaccessible, and as such, arrangements were on to distribute over 1,000 refuse bags next week for effective collection of refuse in both residential and commercial areas.

    “We want to distribute 20,000 galvanised bins in two months, starting from Agege,” Forgacs said.

    During demonstrations on how some equipment work, the CEO said that refuse could be fed both manually or through automation to the 41 compactors to reduce the size by six times before transfer to the Epe landfill.

    “The compaction ratio is 6:1 which means that the refuse is reduced by six times.

    “We can lift and tip at the same time; this will lead to transportation of more waste,” he said.

    Forgacs said that all loading operations in both Tapa and Epe were automated for efficiency.

    According to him, an initial investment of 50 million dollars has been made into the project.

    He explained that operational vehicle fleet would be increased to 500 trucks in subsequent phases of the project.

    Forgacs said that Visionscape Sanitation Solutions has consignment of 100 new waste management fleet embedded with cutting-edge technology.

    “The Visionscape trucks are fully equipped and embedded with cutting-edge features, which include a Global Positioning System (GPS), radio-frequency identification (RFID), and automotive Controller Area Network (CAN bus) system.

    “These innovative features are designed to meet the operational needs facing waste,” he said.

    Forgacs said Visionscape holds the residential waste collection contract for the State and the management of three operating waste transfer loading stations, which are currently being renovated, under LAWMA.

    He said Visionscape was also constructing West Africa’s first engineered landfill in Epe.

    “To-date, the company has successfully cleared over 1,000 litter black spots and illegal dumpsites across Lagos State, as part of their pre-operational phase,” he told news men.

    Earlier, Mr Abiodun Bamgbose, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Environment said that the state government would not derail in its vision of mass job creation and provision of healthy environment under the CLI for residents of Lagos.

    NAN reports that sweeping machines which are said to have started operation in the state were also on display.

    Also, three gangs of workmen (teams of construction or field workers) differentiated by the colours of their uniforms, who had been trained for refuse collection and disposal, were on parade.

    The CLI was established to address, enforce and regulate the challenges in the solid waste management systems in Lagos. (NAN)