Enough is Enough!
FIPCOM-MEDEF Saint-Martin had already alerted the authorities on several occasions. This time, the statement has been made publicly. On the initiative of its chairman, Michel Vogel, a press conference was held on 31 July at the CCISM to give a voice to businesses facing late payments from the Collectivité.
As an employers’ organisation, FIPCOM-MEDEF Saint-Martin’s role is to pass on its members’ concerns. This is precisely what Michel Vogel did, accompanied by Émeric Baray of Sottra BTP, Ève Riboud of Dauphin Telecom, Clara Brander, chair of the Saint-Martin Architects’ Association, Franck Fleming, chair of the Construction Industry Association, Gérald Gumbs, president of the Transporters’ Association; Franck Viotty of TMTT; and Yann Lecam, president of the Marigot Traders’ Association.
The letter from business leaders addressed to President Mussington in July went unheeded (see our 24 July edition). Today, businesses are no longer able to meet their costs and the message is clear: “Pay the companies for the work they have carried out on behalf of the Collectivity.”
Unprecedented delays
In the construction sector, outstanding payments stood at around €20 million as at 31 July, excluding interest on late payments. Franck Fleming reports increasingly long payment delays: Semsamar is supposed to settle its invoices within 45 days, the hospital within 90 days and the Collectivité within 95 days, but in reality these delays are at least 270 days, or even a year. The advance payments due at the start of construction projects are also not being paid on time. Yet companies must continue to pay for materials, suppliers and wages.
The Collectivité asks them to use factoring, but this solution comes at a cost and the banks refuse to finance the receivables. According to industry professionals, an invoice for €50,000 ends up costing the Collectivité €150,000 after eighteen months, including interest on late payments. This raises questions about budget management. Contractors are also questioning the procedures being applied. How can the Collectivité accept a purchase order, allow companies to carry out the work, and then inform them that the invoice is non-compliant at the time of payment?
Ève Riboud believes that the companies’ requests are legitimate and, if the Collectivité’s procedures have changed, it must explain them. Public services must be prepared to listen to and support businesses.
Construction sites at a standstill
Due to a lack of cash flow, some contractors are being forced to halt work. The secondary school and the community centre in Grand Case will not be completed on time, and new projects are struggling to get off the ground due to a lack of responses to calls for tenders. The plastic and glass recycling bins are full; the company responsible for collection has stopped collecting due to non-payment.
On the architects’ side, Clara Brander criticises the impossibility of obtaining clear answers or identifying the right point of contact within the Collectivité. Design competitions are launched and studies commissioned, but they remain unpaid due to a lack of funding. The difficulties also affect the town planning department, where information on temporary occupation permits is virtually impossible to obtain and the processing times for building permits are extremely long. Furthermore, some temporary occupation permits are not being enforced, depriving the Collectivité of revenue. The Saint-Martin Architects’ Association had already highlighted these shortcomings in an open letter published in October 2025, which too went unheeded.
When the construction sector is struggling, the consequences are felt across the entire economy. For Yann Lecam, the millions of euros that are not paid to businesses are no longer being injected into the territory’s economy, with a direct impact on purchasing power. Employees are unsure whether they will keep their jobs, contractors are no longer being paid, and everyone is cutting back on spending, to the detriment of shops and restaurants.
A joint day of action planned for September
Whilst the initial intention is not to bring the region to a standstill, as Gérald Gumbs points out, there is no other solution when no one is responding, when businesses have been waiting to be paid for two years and have already raised the alarm about the situation. FIPCOM-MEDEF is calling on the Collectivité to provide a detailed breakdown of outstanding invoices, a firm timetable for clearing arrears, a transparent procedure for prioritising payments, the settlement of interest on arrears, the payment of ERDF grants and the appointment of a dedicated contact person to handle outstanding payments. In the absence of a response, business owners are considering a general shutdown of the economy, across all sectors. This day of joint action could be organised in September.
A meeting with the local authority’s technical staff had been scheduled for Monday 3 August; it has been postponed to 12 August… to be continued.
