Dive Brief:
- Red River Waste Solutions has been awarded two exclusive contracts for the collection of residential waste and recycling in Fort Wayne, the second-largest city in Indiana.
- The seven-year contracts will start in January 2018, with the option for one three-year renewal. Red River bid $4.9 million for waste and $2 million for recycling, as reported by The News-Sentinel. The Fort Wayne Board of Public Works chose these bids over a lower recycling bid from current provider Republic Services at a meeting on May 3.
- Once Red River starts next year it will be providing weekly waste collection and biweekly recycling collection to about 82,00 households. This new contract will also cause residents to see the first increase in their monthly collection bills since 2007.
Dive Insight:
The city worked with a consultant to issue a call for bids earlier in the year and recently approved a separate three-year landfill contract with Republic as part of this process. Red River will be taking over responsibility for the collection of about 110,000 tons of refuse and recyclables.
This expands the company's service area to seven states — Louisiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, Iowa, Nebraska and its home base of Texas. The company recently reported a three-year contract extension in Hardin County, KY and has been actively seeking to acquire other smaller companies over the past year or more.
As Red River has experienced in other markets, winning business from one of the industry's larger companies is often challenging. Republic will maintain a presence in the region through its landfill contract and other commercial services, but this news now gives Red River a notable stake in the market.
