Alberta Auditor General Slams Fossil ‘War Room’ for Undocumented Sole-Source Contracts
Alberta Auditor General Doug Wylie took aim at the Jason Kenney government’s hapless fossil industry “war room” in an annual report that identified more than C$1.7 billion in accounting errors, inaccurate projections, and other “adjustments” in the provincial budget.
The war room, known as the Canadian Energy Centre, was one of several agencies singled out for in-depth review, CBC reports. It took heat for “the awarding of $1.3 million in sole-sourced contracts without adequate justification or documentation.”
“Unlike open bidding, sole-sourcing is a non-competitive process,” so “provincial procurement guidelines dictate that sole-sourced contracts are only permitted when only one known source exists, or when a specific contractor has specialized expertise,” CBC explains. “Wylie found that CEC contracts were being awarded without adequate evidence that the successful bidders were solely qualified for the work, or that the services would be provided at a reasonable cost.”
My guess is he was supporting more friends...