Victoria Transport Infrastructure Minister Jacinta Allan confirms on Friday that the government has 'in-principle' agreed with the contractors Cross Yarra Partnership on a 'new deal' for Melbourne's Metro Tunnel cost overruns.
According to the deal, the government and the contractors will split the current cost overrun of $2.74 equally between each other. That means an additional $1.34 Billion is taken out of the taxpayers' pockets on the top of the original estimated cost of the $11 Billion.
About a month ago I had posted a news article blaming station redesigns contributing to multibillion-dollar blowout. The herald article below also mentions some 'unforeseen challenges' and rising labour costs etc.
"Design changes to two CBD stations, unforeseen challenges with the scale and construction of the underground stations because of Melbourne's challenging soil conditions and the rising costs of labour and materials have driven up the price tag"
They have not left out any potential excuses. All is covered.
Really a `watertight` excuse.
Aside from astronomical budget overruns, the artwork for Melbourne's Metro Tunnel is work in progress
Maree Clarke's expansive, five-station artwork is among many that will transform the daily commute
cover tunnel photo by: Matt Brown from London, England / CC BY
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https://www.smh.com.au/national/victoria/metro-tunnel-s-2-7-billion-budget-blowout-revealed-20201211-p56mph.html
Metro Tunnel's $2.7 billion budget blowout revealed
www.smh.com.auTaxpayers are set to fork out more than $1 billion extra for the key project by 2025.