THE SELECTION OF THE INDEPENDENT CONTROL ENGINEER IS IN PROGRESS

The DBR Metro Project Directorate maintains the view that the contractors of the 4th line of the metro may exclusively work under the guarantee of highest standards of safety and legality. By the stipulations of the contract concluded by and between the Metropolitan Municipality and the BKV Private Ltd. on investor’s tasks in Stage I of the project of the 4th line of the metro, BKV is liable to select, with the agreement of the Metropolitan Municipality, an independent control engineer to monitor project implementation and compliance with the investor’s decisions. This also figures among the specifications of the loan agreement between the Metropolitan Municipality and the European Investment Bank. The selection and specification of tasks of the independent control engineer under the financing terms modified to meet the conditions of bidding for the EU grant is currently underway.

Upon the request of the Supervisory Board of BKV Private Ltd. Péter Jávor carried out certain tasks of the control engineer prior to the cancellation of his contract. This activity, however, obviously did not meet the commitments stipulated in the contracts. Payments of invoices are currently made upon the approval of Eurometro Ltd., the FIDIC engineer. From the point of view of the loan agreement concluded with the European Investment Bank this practice proved satisfactory. The conditions of funding will change in connection with the grant advanced from the Cohesion Fund, therefore the selection and specification of tasks of the independent control engineer is currently underway.
According to the information provided in earlier press releases, the DBR Metro Project Directorate considered unsubstantiated and insecure the “accelerated” method proposed by BAMCO, involving the rapid passage of the TBMs, then enlargement of the tunnel and subsequent construction of the crossover tunnel. The method submitted for licensing is based on the same principle but the designers now offer the required safety guarantees. The approval of the authority is indispensable for compliance with law, because this is a phase of works subject to licensing.
The DBR Metro Project Directorate keeps on maintaining the view that exclusively safe processes may be applied and contractors may only carry on working on the 4th line of the metro provided they guarantee the highest standards of safety and legality. Departures from the initially planned routing in the range of a few centimeters always occur during the construction of a tunnel. This is rather usual even if a state-of-the-art technology such as the TBM tunnel construction is applied. The magnitude of departure of BAMCO from the initial routing does not impact the future geometry of tracks.
Péter Jávor earlier suggested to proceed with the construction according to the initial contract, so that the TBMs would only progress after the completion of the crossover tunnel, but this solution would have caused approximately one year delay in the deadline of completion of Stage I without any major improvement of the safety of construction and the safety of the completed facility.
Related details from the earlier press releases of the DBR
„The BAMCO Consortium should have completed the crossover tunnels at the St. Gellért Square station prior to the arrival of the TBMs. The Contractor was delayed and intended to make up the delay by passing the TBMs through the location of future crossover tunnel and subsequently enlarge the elements of the tunnel. DBR deemed this solution inadequate based on the risk analyses carried out and the shortfalls of the design documentation.”
„The National Transport Authority carried out on-site inspection in the tunnel, where it was ascertained that the construction of the Gellért Square crossover tunnel by the modified technology indeed calls for the approval by the mining authority. BAMCO complied with the ruling of the Authority: stopped the TBM and submitted the application for license to the National Transport Authority immediately, so we were informed.”
„By the preliminary assessment of the DBR the latest suggestion of the Contractor waiting for the approval of the authority is regarded safe; nevertheless, being the Customer, DBR will keep on procuring compliance with the norms of legitimacy.”