Builder that lost $1.3b contracts considers options
The Housing Department is taking over a construction company's three building sites today despite facing legal action after terminating its contracts this week.
The decision to take over the Dickson Construction projects was disclosed after a joint meeting of the Housing Authority's tender and building committees yesterday.
The three sites, one in Aberdeen and two in Fanling, comprise more than 7,000 flats and are worth more than $1.3 billion. Completion will be delayed for more than a year.
The department is terminating Dickson's contract because of delays blamed on shortages of manpower and materials.
Dickson Construction has told the department it is considering applying for a court injunction.
'It is an unprecedented case,' housing chief Thomas Chan Chun-yuen said yesterday. 'We have to make a decision now, having given ample time for the contractor to improve its performance.'
