Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 17 October 2019
137. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of capital projects anticipated to commence in the next five years that cost €100 million or more; the expected cost of external consultants for each project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42882/19]
View answerThe vast majority of individual capital projects funded by the Department have a capital value of less than €100 million. There are currently three projects in the higher education sector approved/approved in principle for funding by the Department that have an estimated total project cost of greater than €100 million and that will be delivered in the next five years.
Programme II of the Grangegorman development is scheduled for completion in mid-2020 and has a total construction cost of approximately €220m ex VAT. The projects, which are being delivered under a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement, comprise the Central and East Quads and will together provide some 52,000 m2 of academic space for TU Dublin.
The cost of external consultants supporting the Authority on this project has been in the region of €8m to date. This has included the full range of architectural, QS and engineering skills which are essential to the design and planning of any major construction project.
In addition, two of five projects recently approved in principle for co-funding under the Higher Education Strategic Infrastructure Fund will involve total investments of over €100m. The projects are UCC – Cork Business School (CUBS) Project and UCD – Future Campus Project. Exchequer funding of up to €25m has been approved for each of the projects in question, with the balance of funding to be provided by HEIs from their own resources, borrowing and philanthropy.
As these projects are still at an early stage of development, it is not possible at this point to provide cost estimates for external consultants.
