Price to dual Tomatin-Moy rose by £15 million since first procurement was cancelled by Scottish Government because it did not represent ‘best value’
Dualling the Tomatin-Moy section of the A9 will cost around £15 million MORE than a rejected previous bid for the contract, The Inverness Courier can reveal.
When then transport minister Jenny Gilruth told Holyrood in February 2023 that the Scottish Government would fail to meet its vow to completely dual the road from Inverness to Perth, which is among the most dangerous in Scotland, she explained the only bid received for the Tomatin-Moy section was "significantly higher" than a £115 million estimate and so it "would not represent best value for the taxpayer".
Now 18 months on, it has emerged that the original bid which was received in October 2022 came to just under £170 million - far more than Transport Scotland’s estimates of £115 million to £137 million.
It comes as Balfour Beatty has been awarded a £185 million contract by Transport Scotland to dual the 13-mile stretch.
The figures were revealed in a letter from current transport secretary Fiona Hyslop to the convener of the Scottish Parliament’s net zero, energy and transport committee and Highland MSP Edward Mountain.
In it, Ms Hyslop stated: “I am now in a position to confirm that following the successful completion of the mandatory standstill period the contract has been awarded to Balfour Beatty at a cost of £184.7 million at May 2024 prices.”
She went on: “I can advise that the contract value for the single bid received in October 2022 in relation to the previous procurement for the A9 Dualling: Tomatin to Moy project was £169,986,287 at October 2022 prices.”
She explained that it was the first procurement of a major roads project undertaken by Transport Scotland after Covid and “Scottish ministers were unable to conclude that the tender submission represented best value for the taxpayer”.
The reason for that was “only a single tender was received on that procurement, no direct market comparator cost was available at that time” and it seemed high calculating “significant inflationary effects” and Transport Scotland’s cost comparator which came in at just under £137 million.
Inverness and Nairn MSP Fergus Ewing said the increasing cost is the sort of waste - of time and of money - that will anger many people as vowed to pressure the Scottish Government to act.
“Whilst I welcome the engagement of Balfour Beatty to dual the Tomatin to Moy section of the A9,” he said. “The revelation that Transport Scotland could have saved over a year in time and at least £15 million in taxpayers’ money by accepting the cheaper bid will anger many of my constituents as a massive waste of money.
“The SNP government must now speed up the A9 dualling programme. This can be done and should be done. I asked the First Minister to do this at a meeting with him on June 18, at which I led a cross-party delegation of MSPs from all parties (except the Greens who are against the dualling of the A9).
“Meantime there have been a succession of serious road incidents in the last few days alone. Each one causes misery and suffering for the victims and families.
“I’ll be pressing the First Minister for this accelerated A9 dualling programme in return to business in early September. And urging him in particular to dual the northerly sections earlier than planned. All the next sections to be dualled just happen to be in [First Minister] John Swinney’s constituency.“
As part of the Tomatin-Moy contract, Balfour Beatty will upgrade 9.6 kilometres of single carriageway to dual carriageway, construct four major bridges along the route as well as deliver new side roads together with various junction upgrades. Balfour Beatty will also provide over 10 kilometres of improved active travel routes to promote and encourage cycling and walking in the local area.
Hector MacAulay, managing director of Balfour Beatty’s regional business in Scotland, said: “The A9 Dualling: Tomatin to Moy project will continue to deliver far-reaching benefits to the Scottish economy, creating hundreds of new jobs and stimulating growth of business communities, especially in the tourism industry, as well as improving road user safety.”
A Transport Scotland spokesman said: “Our sympathies are with everyone who has lost a loved one on Scotland’s roads, one life lost is one too many.
“The cabinet secretary has recently written to the net zero energy and transport committee to explain the detail behind the decision. The previous competition resulted in a single bid in October 2022 which was significantly higher than the original cost estimate and therefore we could not determine best value for the public at that time.
“The bid was also submitted when there was significant and well-documented uncertainty about construction prices, particularly in relation to the effects of Covid, and market uncertainty has subsequently continued as a result of other inflationary factors such as those resulting from the UK mini budget.
“Ahead of the most recent procurement, Transport Scotland consulted extensively with the construction industry to develop and implement a contract strategy which would attract greater competition and best value for the public. As a result of that necessary work, three tenders were received and therefore we can be confident that the contract price represents the best value for the public that the market can produce at this time.
“Transport Scotland and Scottish ministers have been subject to significant criticism as a result of the terms and conditions previously used on our major roads infrastructure projects. The significant changes made to the contract strategy have not only provided a platform for effective competition in the recent procurement but will also be crucial in attracting bidders for our future roads procurements being delivered using design and build contracts.”
