The PDU, which administers the Provincial Growth Fund (PGF), said it accepted the findings of the review that due diligence on personnel associated with the waste-to-energy project should have been undertaken prior to approval of PGF funding for the project and a ministerial announcement.
"We also accept the recommendations made in the review. We fell below prudent standards of due diligence and we have apologised to the Minister for not getting this right," said PDU head Nigel Bickle.
"The public quite rightly expects government agencies to run a robust process before awarding contracts or approving funding. In this case we made a mistake by not completing appropriate checks on personnel associated with the waste-to-energy project.
Bickle said there would have been enough time to complete the checks prior to any funding being approved and the subsequent ministerial announcement.
"The fact that these issues would most likely have been picked up in the contract negotiations process, post-announcement and before any PGF funding was actually handed over, is no excuse," he said.
The PDU would be strengthening its systems and processes for assessing and approving requests for funding.
In a statement, Jones said he was disappointed by the lack of checks and balances in place ahead of officials recommending the PGF support the project.
But he welcomed the review.
"I have confidence in our Provincial Development Unit. The scaling-up process was a steep learning curve and I thank Nigel and his team for their thorough review."