New setback for Balfour Norfolk job

Balfour Beatty's delayed sea defence project at Sea Palling was again on hold this week as bad weather dashed the contractor's hopes of making up lost time.

The offshore site has been at a standstill since 13 April when a vital 3,600 tonne crane barge was damaged after breaking loose in heavy seas.

Work briefly recommenced on Sunday (15 May), but on Monday night, as Force 6 winds raised the waves to a height of 2.5m, work was again called off. The œ6 million scheme to build four protective reefs off the Norfolk coast was still on hold as CJ went to press on Tuesday.

The contractor hopes to speed up construction by introducing two self-propelled side-discharging barges which could deliver rock to the reefs without the help of the crane. These would enable work to proceed on two reefs at once, giving the project a chance of completing on schedule in September.

But with the new equipment also unable to operate until calmer conditions return, Balfour Beatty now faces an even grimmer struggle to finish the contract on time and before the winter makes further progress unlikely.

The project has suffered a series of disasters since its start in April last year. Two people have been killed while working on the scheme, and equipment has broken loose and drifted ashore four times.