Tuesday, February 3, 2009

S’pore govt in active talks with sports hub consortium

Source : Business Times - 3 Feb 2009

The Singapore government is in ‘active discussion’ with the Singapore Sports Hub Consortium which is facing funding difficulties amid the liquidity crunch.

Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports, Yu-Foo Yee Shoon, told Parliament on Tuesday that the government is in talks with the group on how it intends to proceed with the multi-billion Sports Hub project.

Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, Vivien Balakrishnan, added that ‘negotiations are still ongoing’ and any details on deadlines or potential losses will compromise negotiations.

The earliest completion date of the project is now 2012.

A consortium led by a subsidiary of France’s Bouygues Construction won the tender early last year to build the $1.2-billion (US$793 million) complex including a dome-shaped national stadium, with a retractable roof, able to seat 55,000 people.

It was also to feature a 6,000-capacity indoor aquatic centre, an artificial river offering whitewater rafting, and a 3,000-capacity multi-purpose arena.

Known as the Singapore Sports Hub, the project was initially targeted for completion at the end of 2011, with the aim of making Singapore competitive with other major cities and sports venues.


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