Latest Rail News

14.08.15

HS2 engineering contracts out to tender next month

Contracts for major civil engineering works in HS2, including tunnels and viaducts, will be put out to tender next month.

An HS2 Ltd spokesperson told RTM that it will issue invitations to tender for an ‘engineering delivery partner’ (EDP) to provide works valued at £350m.

It also said a second £900m contract for enabling works, such as clearings sites and demolition, will be put out to tender in the autumn.

The procurement process for most of the major engineering works between London and Birmingham will start after the publication of a pre-qualification questionnaire next month. There will be contracts for seven lots, ranging between £700m and £1.1bn, totalling £6.4bn.

453 Beth West cupply chain conference c. HS2 LtdBeth West, HS2’s commercial director (pictured on the right),  said in a statement to RTM: “To deliver Europe’s largest infrastructure project on time and on budget, we need to work closely with suppliers to ensure that sufficient planning is in place before the start of the formal procurement process.

“This will also benefit business, by giving them a head start to make the investments they require in recruitment, training and education to support the innovative ways of working we need to develop HS2.”

Royal Assent is not expected until the end of next year. But West said the current procurement exercises do not “pre-empt the granting of Royal Assent for the HS2 Bill currently going through Parliament”.

She added: “Only essential work would be carried out in preparation for the start of the main construction period in 2017.”

The below graphic explains more about the HS2 procurement timeline:

964 When we will be buying

Earlier this month, RTM reported on rumours that two joint ventures, one between Atkins and CH2M and another between Bechtel and Jacobs, had emerged as the potential frontrunners for the project’s EDP.

This week it was announced that Jacobs would open a new office in Birmingham, partly due to HS2.

Vice president Bob Duff told the Birmingham Post that the high-speed project was a “big driver” behind the expansion and a significant part of the firm’s current strategy – but said the new office near the HS2 headquarters also sought to “get involved in some of the exciting things that will happen in the region”.

Construction works on the first phase of the project are expected to start in 2017, with trains expected to be running by 2026.

Below is more information about the value of the coming HS2 contracts:

759 Categories

693 What we will be buying

HS2 chief executive Simon Kirby is a keynote speaker at RTM’s upcoming black-tie event in Manchester, TransCityRail North. Find out more and get your ticket here.

Comments

Gb   14/08/2015 at 23:34

Surely it is folly to instigate this process which will inevitably give rise to substantial costs when the HS2 project may not (and hopefully will not) happen! Where is the justification for building this line. As far as I am aware, no large company or organisation has committed to building new factories or offices if HS2 were to be built. A recent comment suggested that 22 minutes (or so) would be cut off the London to Birmingham journey time but if this is to arrive at Curzon St., this saving could easily be lost getting to the city centre! Far better to invest in the re-instatement of some of the lines closed in the late 1960s and enhancement and development of our present routes. As extra capacity to the north is apparently required, it would seem far more logical to re-open the ex MR and GCR routes north to relieve the WCML of some of the traffic diverted to it in order to exploit its electrification. There are numerous truncated routes around the country whose re-instatement to my mind would be far more beneficial, cost a lot less and avoid the misery likely to be caused to hundreds, possibly thousands of householders along the route for many years and who may never be able to use it. The Govt. should drop this scheme for once and for all!

Nickk   15/08/2015 at 17:13

Once again I question "Where is the electricity coming from to run this line?" When asked directly to HS2, they said "A guaranteed supply from the National Grid"! Every spring, the Government heaves a sigh of relief that we've had a mild winter, not having been forced to invoke the power cuts that will become inevitable, especially with older power stations being de-commissioned. Perhaps this is the real reason that many of the electrification projects have been put on hold, and not due to railway budgeting. I can see people being thrilled that High Speed Trains are whizzing up and down the country when their lights are out...

GB   26/08/2015 at 14:45

Nickk - According to StopHS2, the Govt. estimate for HS2 does not include the cost of power generation equipment to drive the line. A figure of a further £16bn was quoted to cover this.

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