黑洞社区

The boss of the company in charge of development work on Battersea Power Station has revealed the enormous scale of the project鈥檚 construction problems and cost overruns. 

In an exclusive interview with 黑洞社区, Rob Tincknell, chief executive of Battersea Power Station Development Company, refused to rule out that costs could end up doubling to 拢1.5bn.

The budget for Phase 2 of the power station鈥檚 redevelopment, designed by architect Wilkinson Eyre and with a new energy centre beneath, was originally put at 拢750m. But Tincknell (pictured inset) told 黑洞社区: 鈥淚t [was] reported it went to 拢1.15bn 鈥� and it鈥檚 now north of that figure. Those [increases] have been huge, huge, huge numbers.鈥�

Asked whether the work could end up doubling in cost, Tincknell said: 鈥淚鈥檓 not going to say. Hopefully not.鈥�

This part of the work has been blighted by a number of problems, which have seen the cost to rebuild the grade II*-listed structure鈥檚 chimneys go from 拢28m to 拢48m.

The cost of the energy centre quadrupled to 拢62m, while the bill to get rid of asbestos, initially estimated at just 拢190,000, ended up rising to 拢44m. Tincknell said the developer had 鈥減retty much 鈥� had to scrub the entire building with a toothbrush鈥�.

The cost hikes have meant the Malaysian backers of the scheme have had to pump equity into the development.

Tincknell declined to comment how much Sime Darby and SP Setia have stumped up but he admitted: 鈥淚t鈥檚 cost them. They are having to pay for this extra cost through large increases in the equity contribution they are making to the project.鈥�

However, Tincknell said they remained 鈥渦tterly committed鈥� to the project and 鈥渦tterly determined鈥� to make the power station 鈥渁n unbelievable centrepiece for this wider development.鈥�

Tincknell also revealed that Skanska, which this week said it was taking a 拢33m provision on a number of unnamed contracts in the UK, is carrying out the work on Phase 2 without a final contract in place, meaning the price is still unknown. 

Meanwhile, Carillion has built more than 850 homes under a fixed-price lump sum contract.

Carillion, which last week said it would take an 拢845m hit on undisclosed contracts in the UK and overseas, declined to say whether Battersea was one cause of its problems.

But speaking before the 拢5bn-turnover contractor made its writedowns public, Tincknell said it had done a 鈥渂rilliant job鈥� adding: 鈥淚鈥檓 certain they will be taking a further role in later phases.鈥�

Tincknell said the decision to bring in Sir Robert McAlpine to carry out Phase 3 鈥� consisting of 1,300 apartments by high-profile architects Lord Foster and Frank Gehry 鈥� on a construction management contract showed his firm had learned lessons from the problems on earlier phases. It had initially selected French contractor Bouygues to construct the third phase under a design-and-build contract.

He said it 鈥渕ade sense鈥� to go down the construction management route and added: 鈥淐ontractors are just trying to avoid risk at the moment.鈥�

Tincknell defended cutting the amount of affordable housing by 40% to just 386 homes 鈥� critics of which included London mayor Sadiq Khan, who said the developer had 鈥渉oodwinked鈥� the local council. Tincknell said that once 鈥渨e can see a good return of profit [鈥�] we can start to look at reintroducing more affordable housing鈥�.

The 4,239-home scheme, only 9% of which will be affordable, is due to be completed by 2025.