Slippage on new Dublin velodrome, but tendering stage approaching

Some of the commencement dates for construction of the new velodrome on the Sport Ireland Campus in west Dublin have passed without the anticipated progress made, though the tendering process is now approaching.

The Department of Sport has now offered an update on the project, some three months after construction had been pencilled in to begin. While that August date has passed without work beginning, and without the construction contract having even been awarded, the project has edged forward in the background.

Paul Donnelly TD, the Sinn Féin TD for the Dublin West constituency, tabled a Dáil question asking Minister of State at the Department of Sport Thomas Byrne TD for an update on the project.

He asked “if construction works have commenced on the construction of a new national velodrome centre; and, if so, the number of construction companies that applied for the contract but were unsuccessful”.

Mr Byrne confirmed work had not yet begun, but added the tendering process was nearing the stage where bidders would compete to secure the construction contract.

“Construction works have not commenced on the National Velodrome and Badminton Centre,” he said. “The project is currently at pre-tender approval stage and is subject to the availability of funding and the necessary approvals under the Public Spending Code.”

The pre-tender stage is an indication that the plans are finished and planning secured, with the tender documents being prepared for release to the companies interested in taking on the work.

In May, the ‘project information memorandum’ for the new velodrome stated the “all-in budget for the scheme is circa €87m inclusive of all professional fees, VAT, statutory fees, inflation”.

In the ‘key dates summary’ it was envisaged the works contract would be awarded last July, with work commencing in August. Once the project starts, construction is expected to be rapid. ‘Practical completion’ is projected by March 2025 and the handover of the facility will be in May 2025, exactly two years from now. However, those dates have slipped by at least several months.