MONTREAL - The debacle over the City of Montreal's broken water meter contract continues.

The $355-million contract was cancelled after the auditor general found problems with how it was awarded.

An arbitrator recently ruled the city still has to pay the GENIeau Consortium nearly $8 million for work already done.

That means taxpayers are now on the hook for nearly $11 million, including $3 million that was earlier awarded to the firm when the contract was cancelled.

But the consortium is refusing to reveal the details of that huge bill because of a confidentiality clause in the contract.

Lawyers from the firm were at an access to information commission Thursday, but reporters weren't allowed to stick around for the proceedings.

Alex Norris, a city councillor with Projet Montreal, called the secrecy "completely unacceptable."


City's biggest ever contract

The contract was the largest ever awarded by the city of Montreal. It was cancelled by the mayor in 2009 because of allegations the bidding process was rigged.

The city wanted to install 30,000 water meters in Montreal companies and monitor water usage remotely with GENIeau maintaining and overseeing the meters and software for 25 years.

There have been allegations that the city overpaid by $150 million.