Caught in the Crosswinds – Anticipating (and alleviating) construction pinch points

The construction phase of wind projects can be fraught with time, cost and quality issues. In this episode, we speak with two industry insiders about some of the common pinch points in the construction of a wind project and explore steps that help minimise the likelihood of contractor/developer disputes occurring. Ashurst Perkins Coie's Michael Weatherley is joined by two special guests to discuss construction risks in wind projects, including how they can best be  anticipated and mitigated to avoid or manage disputes between developers and contractors. George Fisher is a senior contentious construction solicitor at SSE Renewables and Kia Hua Tan is a senior legal counsel at Seatrium Limited. The trio considers the unique nuances and curve balls that can hamper wind projects, including  tight margins and split procurements driving complex interface risks. As the discussion makes clear, careful and precise planning is required to allow for things like extreme weather, vessel availability and rising offshore logistics costs. On cost volatility, both our guests stress the importance of clarity in fixed-price contracts and price escalation mechanisms to avoid surprises later on. They also flag quality issues across package boundaries, suggesting that these require detailed interface matrices and harmonised dispute provisions to avoid protracted blame games between contractors. To listen to this and subscribe to future episodes in the Caught In The Crosswinds mini-series, search for “Ashurst Perkins Coie Legal Outlook” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favourite podcast player. You can also find the full range of Ashurst Perkins Coie podcasts at https://www.ashurstperkinscoie.com/en/podcasts/ For more content in this series visit the Caught in the Crosswinds page.  The information provided is not intended to be a comprehensive review of all developments in the law and practice, or to cover all aspects of those referred to. Listeners should take legal advice before applying it to specific issues or transactions.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.