Metronet crisis: £500m Westinghouse contract cancelled

Metronet moved one step closer to being brought out of administration this week with the cancellation of Westinghouse Rail System’s £550m signalling upgrade contract on London Underground’s (LUL’s) sub-surface lines.

The deal is the result of protracted negotiations with Bombardier, which sublet the contract to Westinghouse. LUL hailed the deal as bringing “significant savings”. However Tube contractors, frustrated at the lack of new work since Metronet’s demise last summer, called on LUL to channel the savings into long delayed schemes, such as Metronet’s station upgrade programme.

One Tube contractor told CJ: “This will have a ripple effect with work for contractors providing cable ways and switch rooms disappearing into a black hole. As it is work is very sparse. The stations programme has stalled since Metronet collapsed. There is absolutely no new stations work coming out.”

Another commented: “The talks with Bombardier were a sticking point to getting Metronet out of administration, so its good news from that viewpoint. Hopefully the money saved by bringing it in house will be channeled into more station and line upgrade work.”

London Underground said the work would be retendered but did not specify when.

Bombardier, one of five shareholders in Metronet before it went bust, has agreed a one-off £95m payment to Invensys, the owner of Westinghouse, as compensation. It will also see its order backlog related to Metronet fall by over £1bn.