HS2 has confirmed that nine of its bridges have been affected by welding defects and five National Highways road bridges have been impacted as well
Yesterday, Severfield released its interim financial results, which revealed that the group has identified issues in “some bridge structures which were not in compliance with the client’s weld specification requirements.”
HS2 has since confirmed that nine of their bridges have been affected by “welding defects related to steel fabrication work undertaken by one of our suppliers.”
A loss for the group
The group identified the issue as affecting 12 projects either ongoing or completed in the last four years.
The report states that the issues “all arise out of a particular bridge specification and related sub-optimal choices of welding procedures, exacerbated by limitations in the specified weld testing regime for these projects. A comprehensive review is currently being undertaken by the Group, in conjunction with its affected clients, relevant industry authorities and insurers to fully understand the extent of the actions required to resolve the issue, which has not affected the safety of any operational bridges.”
The report further states that, while not yet fully determined, the group has incurred costs of £7.1m for testing and remedial work, with a further £13.3m assessed, amounting to a non-underlying charge of £20.4m.
The group is pursuing all potential recoveries from third parties, including insurance.
These issues have been reflected by a drop in share price of 35% on the same day as the announced issues.
Corrective work is already being undertaken by HS2
HS2 have said that the issues relating to nine bridges or viaducts are already undergoing repair work to rectify the defects, with work elsewhere continuing unhindered.
The bridges are all now safe after being inspected.
A HS2 spokesperson said: “A comprehensive review has been undertaken to determine the extent of the further action required. We are working closely with the company and our supply chain to address the issue.
“This will not impact on the safety or quality of the operational railway which is being designed to the highest standards.”
National Highways road bridges were also affected
National Highways have confirmed that five of their bridges have been affected by the welding defects, and weight restrictions have been applied to some while investigations and inspections are undertaken.
A National Highways spokesperson said: “We are carrying out targeted inspections on a small number of bridges to rule out any potential issues.
“These bridges remain safe to use. For any abnormal load movements, we have put restrictions in place as a precaution while we assess whether any further strengthening measures may be required.”
Neither HS2 nor National Highways have disclosed which bridges have been affected by the welding defects.
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