CH2M’s Troubled Past Raises Questions About $137 Million PMO Contract Award

Following a lawsuit filed by Hill International against the government of the Virgin Islands for awarding a $137 million Super Project Management Office (PMO) contract to CH2M—four times the amount Hill had bid—details are emerging that further call into question the government’s decision. The contract, which was expected to manage $16.7 billion in recovery projects as part of the Rebuild USVI initiative, has become the subject of controversy. CH2M, a company with a recent history of legal issues involving overbilling the U.S. government, secured the lucrative contract despite Hill International—a globally respected firm with over 40 years of experience—submitting a more cost-effective bid of $30.2 million. This has prompted a legal challenge from Hill International, which alleges that the decision was not only financially irresponsible but potentially tainted by conflicts of interest. In 2019, CH2M reached a $6.4 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve alle...