PERTH-based smartcard specialist ERG is not giving up without a fight, and may now launch a $250 million damages claim against the NSW state government over the Tcard public transport ticketing debacle.

Chairman Colin Henson said the company was considering legal action over what it describes as “the NSW Government’s unlawful termination of the Tcard contract.” ERG said it had so far identified losses associated with the termination to be approximately $250 million.

The company is now squaring off against the NSW Government, which itself has threatened to sue ERG to recover $95 million of taxpayer funding.

Mr Henson said in a statement that the government had been a difficult partner to work with, and that the project was characterised by a lack of leadership and disinterest by Transport Minister John Watkins and senior bureaucrats.

He said the ERG subsidiary handling the project – Integrated Ticketing Solutions Limited (ITSL) – had presented the Government’s Public Transport Ticketing Corporation (PTTC) with a plan last November that could have seen the Tcard system rolled out over the next 18 months.

“The program was backed by an independent, reputable Sydney based Project Management consultant specifically engaged to assess the program,” Mr Henson said.

“Despite the quality of the program, apart from superficial comment and questioning, the Government and the PTTC chose to ignore it. This is typical of the lack of communication and co-operation shown by the PTTC and the Government since the contract with ITSL/ERG was signed in 2003.”

“It needs to be remembered that ERG has successfully delivered similar programs with cooperative Government departments in cities all around the world (including San Francisco, Singapore, Hong Kong, and other cities much larger than Sydney), and many of ERG’s current project customers have provided references supporting the company,” he said.