That's the standard contract process, question is - does your neighbor with 3 full time employees get a 300 million dollar contract on a regular basis or even irregular basis That's nonsense, what has urgency got to do with auditing. If you are so small that you don't want to hire legal expertise, why are you getting such huge contracts? This is not normal procedure, even Republicans are saying that. This is corruption and it will be exposed like Trump University.
I agree that it will be good for the Puerto Rico Power company to provide their contracting procedures, the received bids, and other information on selection to ensure that everything was run properly. Note that Whitefish Energy was not the only contract company that won a bid to help restore power in Puerto Rico. How come there is no focus on the other companies? BTW -- many of the contracts I work under have a no auditing clause, but maximum daily caps. Very common.
That was most likely negotiated in response to the below language. Whitefish has a gun to their head if the below is true. http://www.seattlepi.com/news/polit...-Puerto-Rico-power-contract-amid-12311381.php although under the contract the utility can suspend or terminate the contract "for any or no reason"[emphasis mine] after providing written notice to Whitefish and compensating the company for actual expenses.
The other company is a multi billion dollar company with operations in over 30 countries. And then there is the Trump crony company. That's why the difference in focus.
The reason they got the contract according to a director from PREPA is outlined below. More from the article below: http://www.seattlepi.com/news/polit...-Puerto-Rico-power-contract-amid-12311381.php Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority director Ricardo Ramos has praised the work performed by Whitefish so far, saying the company's was the only offer the utility received that did not require a down payment [emphasis mine]. The power company is $9 billion in debt and was already struggling to provide service amid ongoing power outages before hurricanes Irma and Maria hit last month. "There is nothing illegal going on here," Ramos said Thursday.
Have you ever negotiated a contract? Do you understand anything about risk? Whitefish is taking a lot of risk. Most companies would not take the risk that Whitefish is under the contract.
Actually the other company for power-line restoration hired by PREPA is a small Oklahoma fracking company - Mammoth Energy. Mammoth Energy Announces that its Cobra Subsidiary has Entered into a Contract to Aid in the Rebuilding of Puerto Rico’s Energy Infrastructure https://globenewswire.com/news-rele...g-of-Puerto-Rico-s-Energy-Infrastructure.html More info - https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/10/26/16533512/puerto-rico-power-contracts
That's precisely what a corrupt guy would say, he is in on the corruption. " But PREPA never asked for mutual aid from the association, and instead it hired Whitefish to handle the job. "Just a matter of the timing," says Ramos. "Hurricane came, all communications went down, our servers were down." Whitefish then subcontracted Jacksonville Electric Authority and Kissimmee Utility Authority to work with it on transmission system restoration. The firm says it now has about 300 workers on the ground. Even Whitefish CEO Andy Techmanski reportedly noted that it's unusual for electrical utilities to work under a contractor. PREPA's decision to contract Whitefish could be a costly one. While the Whitefish spokeswoman says it's "not possible at this time to estimate" the cost of completing the work, the hourly wages the firm is reportedly charging for its contracted workers are eye-popping. "Under the contract, the hourly rate was set at $330 for a site supervisor, and at $227.88 for a 'journeyman lineman,' " The Washington Post reports. "The cost for subcontractors, which make up the bulk of Whitefish's workforce, is $462 per hour for a supervisor and $319.04 for a lineman. Whitefish also charges nightly accommodation fees of $332 per worker and almost $80 per day for food." UTIER, the electrical workers' union of Puerto Rico, tweeted its consternation at those rates. "We need support and help, but under these conditions it is impossible and questionable. Who allowed this?"" http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-...contract-to-help-restore-power-in-puerto-rico