£550m plan for Kosovo

by Michael Gordon



The first construction contract for the rebuilding of Kosovo is on the verge of being awarded by the Ministry of Defence.

The £110 million private finance initiative deal will require contractors to design, build, and maintain temporary field accommodation for the military and Kosovan civilians. The tender bids have come from Brown and Root US, Hunting Engineering, Taylors Facilities Management, and Taylor Woodrow.

Meanwhile the Kosovan Reconstruction Task Force held a debriefing exercise in the City of London last week, over 250 companies attended from across the British Isles.

The task force briefed construction leaders on working opportunities in Kosovo following its 48-hour 'assess and prioritise' mission.

Nigel Thompson, chairman of the task force said: "The International Monitoring Group [IMG] has been appointed as damage assessors to head up the task force. It has assessed that 25,000 homes were damaged before the bombing even began." The IMG will produce a complete report which must be concluded by 23 July.

Energy minister John Battle said: "I am confident that our engineering excellence and project management are world class and we have a lot to offer to bring Kosovo into the 21st century. We are well suited for reconstruction because it is our fort'. We have been asked to concentrate our skills on power and water."

However, Thompson warned: "If everybody rushed out there it would be madness. There isn't the work or administration, and the place is still not safe.

"There will be very little business for UK construction in the short term. Those likely to win work are in facilities management, utilities, and project management."

It has been agreed that any work will be carried out in joint ventures with Macedonian contractors.

The work will also be split into three tranches. For the next three months £20 million has been allocated for power station and tower repairs, bailey bridges, and quarrying.

The second phase, over the next two years, will cost £80 million, and will begin early in 2000. It will involve upgrading systems, repairing and building hospitals, permanent bridges, maintaining the airport terminal, quarry upgrading, and a new power station.

The third phase, which will begin in 2003 and last up to ten years, will cost around £450 million and is aimed at modernisation rather than repair, including exports of suplus power to neighbouring states.

Harold Freeman of the Treasury, said: "We have set up a stability pact which provides political agreement with all countries and regions involved. We need fair, transparent, and clear guidelines for financial transactions, including tender awards." The major question for contractors wishing to work in Kosovo is whether the task force will be given fast track approval.