03.07.15
Nottingham Tramlink delays lead to £217m loss for Vinci UK
Vinci has revealed a massive loss of £217m in its UK operations with the troubled Nottingham Tramlink extension accounting for most of the losses.
Taylor Woodrow, a subsidiary of Vinci, was responsible for delivering the 17.5km extension of Nottingham’s tram network, which was beset by problems and delays.
The delays are the biggest contributor to Vinci’s civil engineering division pre-tax loss of £165m. The company has faced extra charges from the project including increased staffing costs, dealing with problems the project has faced and liquidated damages penalties.
Originally scheduled to be completed by the end of 2014, issues with redirecting utilities and problems with minimising noise and vibrations along the route have pushed the completion date back.
Construction has now been completed but the new lines are still undergoing testing and commissioning and no launch date has been confirmed.
Bruno Dupety, international manager of Vinci, told Construction Enquirer: “Unfortunately the project has encountered major issues leading to a substantial loss in 2014 in the civils division.
“The handover of the tram system is expected in summer 2015, following testing and commissioning. There will be complex discussions between Vinci, the client and joint venture partner in order to reach financial settlement on this contract.”
(Picture: New Alstom Citadis trams for Nottingham Tramlink. By: Jonathan Smith)
Tell us what you think – have your say below, or email us directly at [email protected]