The company responsible for building London’s new super sewer has revealed they have completed 40% of the construction work and are on track to deliver the project by 2024
The team has faced complex engineering feats – building seven new pieces of land in the Thames, including at Chelsea, Blackfriars and Putney, and digging five giant shafts up to 50m deep below London.
Five years since the project was given the go-ahead Tideway is now updating its estimate of overall costs based on work left to do. With the first and most unpredictable phase of the project now complete, the firm’s revised estimate is £3.8bn compared to £3.52bn which represents an 8% increase.
There will be no change to the estimated £20-25 annual cost for Thames Water bill-payers, as costs remain well within the original projection for customer charges. The company has already raised enough money to complete the project and requires no further funding as a result of this cost revision.
Andy Mitchell, Tideway’s CEO said: “To build the super sewer we are working in an unforgiving tidal river in the centre of one of the busiest cities in the world. We have got train lines and bridges above our heads, and the tube and utility pipes below our feet.
“As we approach the half-way point of construction, the time is right to update our cost estimate. The most important thing to say is that there will be no impact on the estimated cost to Thames Water bill payers and to recognise that our teams have done a great job in getting us this far and keeping us on schedule. Every day we get closer to our aim of giving London a cleaner river.”
Construction is taking place at 23 sites across the city and Tideway is using the river instead of roads as far as possible to build the project, cutting the impact on road congestion and air quality.
