The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has issued a draft determination that proposes to grant authorisation to Wollongong City Council and Shellharbour City Council to jointly tender and contract for waste collection services and the processing of recyclable material.

Waste material in the form of residual garbage, commingled recyclables and organics is collected from the residents of the councils. The recyclable material is then processed at a materials recovery facility.

The councils are seeking tenders for the contracts to provide the waste collection services and recyclables processing services for 15 years. The existing contracts expire on 30 June 2014.

“Granting authorisation will allow the councils to jointly tender and therefore, will enable potential tenderers to bid for one large contract for each service instead of two smaller contracts. This is likely to result in a more competitive tender process and lower costs for the councils,” ACCC Deputy Chair Dr Michael Schaper said.

“The collective process should allow the councils to negotiate better terms and conditions with their chosen service provider, which will therefore flow to councils and their residents.”

The ACCC proposes to grant authorisation for 15 years to allow for the development of relevant infrastructure, particularly a new materials recovery facility which may be built under the recyclables processing contract.

Authorisation provides statutory protection from court action for conduct that might otherwise raise concerns under the competition provisions of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010. Broadly, the ACCC may grant an authorisation when it is satisfied that the public benefit from the conduct outweighs any public detriment.

The ACCC invites submissions from interested parties in relation to the draft determination before making its final decision. Further information is available from the Authorisation register