2023-06-23 11:50:00
The tram site in Liège is a subject that is still being debated on the spot. The main constructor, Colas Belgium, is accumulating delays and today finds itself on the verge of bankruptcy, which does not fail to worry local residents. To avoid disaster and the stoppage of the site, an agreement was validated this Friday following a long mediation.
The Walloon government has decided to disburse 79 million euros to allow the completion of the work on the Liège tram, which has suffered major delays which are exasperating traders and residents. This decision of the executive comes following a mediation started last February between the transport operator of Wallonia (OTW) and the consortium Tram’Ardent. According to the Government, thanks to this intervention, the works “the most impressive” for the inhabitants of Liège should be finished by December 2023. The circulation of the tram with its first passengers is postponed to the end of January 2025
The Tram’Ardent consortium is made up of three companies.
Colas Belgium: active in public works, it is the main builder. It is a subsidiary of the French giant Bouygues, active in Building and Public Works (BTP), telecoms and the media. CAF (Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles): a Spanish manufacturer of wagons, coaches and locomotives. DIF: a fund manager who claims to control more than 15 billion euros of investments which invests mainly in infrastructure projects.
Source diagram: https://letram.be/acteurs-cles
According to the companies in charge of the site, the significant delays are due to a combination of unforeseen events since the start of the work: covid, floods, rise in the price of materials, discovery of buried structures, problems with utilities (sewers, gas, water, electric and telecom cables)…
The budget now exceeds 500 million euros
The 79 million euros released on Thursday will be added to the 450 million euros initially mobilized by the Region for the tram site in Liège.
The Region must nevertheless still wait for the opinion of the Institute of National Accounts (ICN) on the accounting feasibility of the operation before the OTW can submit the final file to the government, according to a government press release released on Friday.
Of the 79 million extension, 54 will only be granted depending on the progress of the work according to the provisions approved between the OTW and the companies concerned. “Penalties are foreseen if the different phases of execution of the site were not respected“, specifies the minister-president Elio Di Rupo, quoted in the same press release.
According to the OTW, the circulation of the tram with passengers is scheduled for January 31, 2025. The end of the works in the city center from sidewalk to sidewalk without the rails is expected for November 30, 2023. Then, a period several months will be needed to run the tram”empty” from the end of August 2024 to test the new rails and take all the necessary safety measures.
Tram in Liege
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