Yorkshire Water Services has failed in a damages claim over the £12.5m redevelopment of one of Yorkshire’s largest sewage treatment works.
The water company sued Taylor Woodrow Construction Northern Ltd, claiming that a six-tank sequencing batch reactor (SBR) installed by the developer at the Knostrop works had been defective.
The High Court has now dismissed the claim, holding that Yorkshire Water has failed to prove that Taylor Woodrow had breached the performance requirements in the parties’ contract and that the SBR had been defective.
The court also allowed counterclaims by Taylor Woodrow and subcontractor Biwater Treatment Ltd, ordering Yorkshire Water to pay more than £1m in settlement of its final accounts and other costs associated with the development.
Yorkshire Water claimed that, since its commission in April 1999, the SBR had not operated to the required capacity or produced effluent of the required quality.
The company sought reimbursement of its costs for remedial works, which it had undertaken without carrying out performance tests on the plant.
However, Forbes J held that he was satisfied that the SBR had not been defective and that the remedial works had not been required to remedy any defect or deficiency in the plant’s design.
He said: “Had Yorkshire Water proceeded to performance testing in the autumn of 2000 and had the SBR been operated properly, there is every reason to believe that it would have passed the performance tests in question.
“As it seems to me, Yorkshire Water has not proved that Taylor Woodrow was unable to meet the performance requirements of the main contract and its case therefore fails.”
He ordered Yorkshire Water to pay to Taylor Woodrow £405,000 for amounts outstanding under the final account for post-takeover assistance given by the company, and almost £700,000 for costs passed on from subcontractor Biwater.
The water company may also face a future bill for legal costs.
Yorkshire Water Services Ltd v Taylor Woodrow Construction Northern Ltd Technology and Construction Court (Forbes J) 8 July 2004.
John Slater QC, David Sears QC and Kate Livesey (instructed by Berwin Leighton Paisner) appeared for the claimant; Jeremy Storey QC, Alexander Hickey and Lynne McCafferty (instructed by Kennedys) appeared for the defendant; David Streatfield-James QC, Fiona Parkin and Patrick Clarke (instructed by Masons, of Manchester) appeared for the first part 20 defendant; Timothy Elliott QC and Gideon Scott-Holland (instructed by Immanuel & Co) appeared for the second part 20 defendant.
References: EGi Legal News 12/7/04
