Welcome to the Friday Feed, our rundown of this week’s construction news
🚉 Rail
The Department for Transport says an underground extension at Manchester Piccadilly ‘needs testing further’ and has agreed to re-evaluate the scheme as part of wider infrastructure upgrades linked to Northern Powerhouse Rail. Meanwhile, MPs have voted down an amendment to the Great British Railways Bill, calling for a commitment to electrification and some saying it was “not the right way”. Rail Minister Lord Hendy said a new West Midlands to Crewe line may be ‘needed sooner’ than planned because of growing capacity pressure on the West Coast Main Line.
⚡Energy
In energy news, the UK has joined a European offshore windfarm plan, which is designed to create the world’s largest ‘clean energy reservoir’. The UK and nine other European countries have agreed to speed up the construction of offshore windfarms into the 2030s and build a power grid in the North Sea. In other news, the Government has launched a £15bn Warm Homes Plan, which includes upgrades to five million homes to help cut energy bills and tackle fuel poverty. The Morecambe and Mona offshore wind projects have entered into leases with The Crown Estate. The projects combined will provide nearly 2GW of capacity, enough to power the equivalent of two million UK homes.
🚗 Roads
National Highways chief executive Nick Harris has announced he is stepping down and will remain in post for a short transition period, with no end date yet confirmed. Costain has been appointed to deliver a new M5 junction which will serve the UK’s biggest electric vehicle battery manufacturing facility in Somerset. Elsewhere, the Yorkshire Highways Alliance has launched tenders for £37.4M of surface treatment works as part of its highways maintenance framework.
🏠Property and development
Bowmer & Kirkland are set to build a £274m Newcastle University student accommodation, replacing the current 1960s building. The National Gallery is planning its biggest ever extension, and seeking engineers for the £375m proposals. Plans for a £500m mixed-use scheme at King’s Cross, including more than 400 homes and a 31-storey tower, are set to be approved by Camden Council this week.
💧Water
In the water sector, Thames Water is seeking a main contractor for its £5.7bn White Horse Reservoir. Previously known as the South East Strategic Reservoir Option, the scheme will secure water supply for 15 million people across the South East region. Arup Binnies Joint Venture has been picked to plan a £600m Southern Water pipeline. The 80km water pipeline will move up to 120 million litres of water a day from the planned White Horse Reservoir in Oxfordshire into Hampshire. Finally, the Government has published its ‘biggest overhaul to water in a generation’ with its Water White Paper. It outlines powers for a new industry regulator, with the idea of giving tougher oversight.
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