AECOM pushes back on USAID award to Amentum
A worker cleans debris in a turbine hall of a Ukrainian power plant damaged by a Russian attack in April. Gettyimages.com/GENYA SAVILOV / Contributor
By
Nick Wakeman
The companies are competing for a contract to support the rebuilding of critical infrastructure in Ukraine.
AECOM has filed an objection to a $53 million award that went to its former subsidiary Amentum to support projects in Ukraine.
The U.S. Agency for International Development created the contract to support efforts at restoring Ukraine's critical infrastructure and basic services for citizens in the wake of the ongoing invasion by Russia.
USAID has a variety of projects underway in Ukraine focused on water, energy, telecommunications and other areas.
The agency picked Amentum to provide architectural and engineering services to support these projects. Amentum was one of five companies to bid on the contract that runs through July 14, 2028.
AECOM argues that its proposal wasn’t properly evaluated. The company also alleges that USAID did not conduct adequate discussions and applied unstated evaluation criteria to proposals.
AECOM filed its protest on May 2 and made a supplemental filing on Thursday. A Government Accountability Office decision is expected on Aug. 12.
AECOM carved out Amentum as an independent company in 2020. Amentum is now in the process of merging with the government services businesses of Jacobs.