Timmy Dooley
Question:261 Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the total amount of money spent by him on the Metro North project since 1 March 2011. [35164/11]
View answerWednesday, 16 November 2011
Questions (261, 262, 263)
Timmy Dooley
Question:262 Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the contingency funding that has been put in place to deal with any potential compensation claims arising out of the decision not to proceed with the Metro North project at this time. [35165/11]
View answerTimmy Dooley
Question:263 Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the total amount of money spent on the DART underground project by him since 1 March 2011. [35166/11]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 261 to 263, inclusive, together.
I am informed by the National Transport Authority (NTA) that they provided €4.9 million to the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) between 1st March 2011 and 31st October 2011 in respect of costs associated with Metro North. The NTA provided €4.6 million to Iarnrod Éireann in respect of costs associated with DART Underground in the same period.
With regard to the question of compensation arising from the deferment of Metro North, the terms of the Metro North PPP Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) provide for RPA to make an ex-gratia payment of up to €1 million to each tenderer remaining in the process (of which there are two) in the event that the project does not proceed. Any claim must be independently verified. This arrangement was approved by the previous Government in 2008. Funding in respect of any reimbursement will be provided by my Department.
I would point out that there will be further costs associated with the orderly deferral of these projects. In the case of Metro North, the main item will be the works at the Mater Hospital which are required to be undertaken in order to preserve, ahead of the completion of the new Adult Hospital, the necessary clearance envelope for the subsequent construction of the underground metro stop whenever it is decided to proceed with this project in the future. I believe it is important to carry out these works so that the Metro can be built at some point in the future without the requirement to close the Adult Hospital.
I expect to have full details of all outstanding costs for these two projects by year-end.