24
REGIONAL REPORT:
international
construction
november 2013
The Russian growth engine
the games the most expensive Winter or
Summer Olympics ever.
The allegations were made in a report,
Winter Olympics
in the Subtropics
,
written by Mr Nemtsov and Leonid
Martynyuk, a member of the Russian
liberal Solidarity movement.
However, at least one contractor that
is directly involved in construction
ahead of the Sochi Olympics denies
these allegations. Igor Pankin, CEO of
Transstroy, a subsidiary of Russian conglomerate Basic Elements,
said, “This [corruption on Sochi contracts] hasn’t been our
experience at Transstroy and it is not the way we run our business.”
Transstroy’s projects for the Sochi Olympics include the
A
€
1.5 billion (US$ 2.1 billion) programme is underway to construct a new confinement
shelter over the site of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster in Ukraine.
A 50/50 joint venture between French contractors Vinci and Bouygues, known as
Novarka, was appointed by state-owned ChNPP to construct the new 29,000 tonne shield,
which will be slid into place over the existing sarcophagus once complete.
Four MR 605 B H32 luffing-jib cranes and an MD 345 B L12 from Potain, plus a
Manitowoc 2250 crawler crane, will spend the next four years working 180 m to the west
of the site to build the 257 m wide, 110 m
tall structure.
There are strict limits on how long workers
can spend on the job site – restrictions that
mean that even assembling the cranes was
a six-month task. Workers must pass health
checks and undergo training before entering
the site, and once there must wear a full-
body suit and breathing apparatus plus a
radioactivity exposure dosimeter.
All the cabs on the cranes have also been
reinforced and fitted with lead protection,
while remote control is a further option.
Chernobyl containment
Site of nuclear power plant disaster being transformed.
Kurortny avenue road and tunnel contract – aiming to increase
access to Sochi by providing an alternative route, including
construction of eight tunnels.
“Russia’s construction industry is changing the way it undertakes
projects, more public-private partnerships and life cycle contracts
are being formed. The market is becoming more transparent, but
remains highly competitive,” Mr Pankin added.
Contract cancellations
Butthereareotherissuesthathavealsoaffectedmajorinfrastructure
projects in Russia, including delayed and cancelled projects. For
instance, construction of the 367 MW Kudepstinskaya thermal
power plant in Sochi that was intended to be part of the city’s
preparations for the Winter Olympics was cancelled earlier
this year.
Construction had been delayed for
various reasons, from the changing of
the general contractor after TGK-2 quit
the project, to the protracted issue of the
state expert appraisal, and the absence of
an energy delivery contract. In the end
the Ministry of Energy reduced Sochi’s
electricity consumption forecast by -40%,
from 1,380 MW to 850 MW – essentially
making the plant redundant.
And concerns have also been raised
about preparations for the 2018 World
Cup. According to PMR, it will be a huge
challenge for Russian officials to develop
nine stadiums for the tournament by the
end of 2017.
For instance, the construction of Zenit
Stadium in St Petersburg is expected to
be completed no earlier than the fourth
quarter of 2015, even though the project was launched in 2007.
And despite the fact that the construction of a new stadium in
Saransk was started in 2010, there has been little progress, said
PMR.
Transstroy’s Mr Pankin said a new approach to Russia’s
tendering system was needed. “Today, the price of the project is
determined by the projection phase documentation. It’s on this
basis a customer makes a price and holds a competition for the
construction.
“A winning contractor elaborates and provides detailed
documentation of the process which in the details often differ
substantially from the project. As a consequence the price and
timescales of project change. However,
a contractor has to keep the original
contract price and work completion time.
Consequently there is a gap in the balance
sheet, and material losses.”
There are also some issues on the
construction equipment side, with some
international manufacturers complaining
of delays for imports to Russia.
Indeed, the Committee for European
Construction
Equipment
(CECE)
CECE and Russian member association
AEB used June’s CTT trade in Moscow
Igor Pankin, CEO of Transstroy, a subsidiary of Russian
conglomerate Basic Elements, said a new approach to
Russia’s tendering system was needed.
A joint venture between Palfinger and Sany is targeting Russia
with crane models developed specifically for this market.
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