The goals of the new contract are to:

• Identify poorly lit spots in the city and address them swiftly and efficiently.
• Improve control and monitoring of installations with operational management and reduce consumption.
• Consolidate efficient lighting and LED technology.
• Achieve greater stability in installations, better service guarantees and a better capacity for response in critical situations.
• Renew installations to improve electrical safety.
• Improve electrical connections for city ceremonies.

Barcelona’s public lighting service currently supplies 146,000 lighting points, representing 20% of the City Council’s overall energy consumption. It is worth noting that this percentage is much lower than the average for municipalities in Catalonia, which stands at around 50%.

The new contract maintains the three lots currently used, which correspond to three areas of the city: Zone A, which includes the districts of Ciutat Vella, L’Eixample and Sants-Montjuïc and accounts for the highest number of artistic and recreational lighting points; Zone B, which includes the districts of Les Corts, Sarrià – Sant Gervasi, Gràcia and Horta-Guinardó, with a high volume of street lights, and Zone C, which includes the districts of Nou Barris, Sant Andreu and Sant Martí, with mountainous areas and more intricacies than the rest. Companies can submit bids for up to two lots but can only be awarded one.

The tendering process is divided into two stages. The first will select eight companies according to experience in maintenance and public lighting works. The second will carry out a value judgement and study automatic criteria, such as economic bids and the environmental quality of vehicle fleets.

The new contract will come into force in 2022, with a hundred per cent of staff expected to be subrogated.

More information at https://energia.barcelona/ca/enllumenat-i-xarxes-de-calor-i-fred.