Council pays waste firm £10m after legal dispute

Biffa has had a waste collection contract with the council since 2003

Leicester City Council has paid millions of pounds to waste firm Biffa after settling a legal case following a "protracted" commercial dispute.

The company has a 25-year contract, which began in 2003, with the council to collect and dispose of domestic waste from 120,000 homes and run two recycling plants in the city.

The council said it could not disclose details of the dispute due to the terms of the legal agreement with Biffa but, on Tuesday, it confirmed it had made a £10m payment to the firm to settle the case.

Biffa said the dispute had been "satisfactorily resolved" and it looked forward to carrying on with the contract until it ends in 2028.

A city council spokesperson said: "The Biffa Leicester waste contract is a long-standing agreement that has been in place since 2003 and is valued at £405m over its lifetime.

"A protracted commercial dispute arose that was eventually settled with a payment to Biffa of £10m after mediation, less than 2.5% of the contract value.

"There have been no disruptions to waste collections in Leicester during this period."

A Biffa spokesperson said: "A dispute arose between Biffa and Leicester City Council, in relation to the long-term waste management contract that started in 2003 and is due to expire in 2028.

"The dispute has been satisfactorily resolved following mediation, with the council paying to Biffa £10m under the terms of a settlement agreement.

"Biffa looks forward to continuing to provide the city of Leicester with high quality waste management services until the end of the contract."

Neither the council or Biffa has commented further.