HS2 Rewrites Civils Contracts in Bid to Halt Britain's Costliest Rail Overrun

HS2 has renegotiated the contracts governing more than 100 kilometres of its high-speed line, tearing up a risk model that left taxpayers exposed to spiralling costs, in the most concrete sign yet that chief executive Mark Wild's sweeping programme reset is gaining traction.

The state-owned company confirmed this week that it has signed revised commercial agreements with EKFB and Align, the two main civil engineering joint ventures building the route between London and the West Midlands. EKFB, a consortium of Eiffage, Kier, Ferrovial Construction and BAM Nuttall, is delivering an 80-kilometre stretch from the Chiltern Tunnel's northern portal to Long Itchington Wood, while Align, comprising Bouygues Travaux Publics, Sir Robert McAlpine and VolkerFitzpatrick, is responsible for 24 kilometres including the Colne Valley Viaduct and the Chiltern Tunnel.

The rationale is a decade of runaway spending. HS2 said the original contracting model, set before construction began in 2020, placed almost all risk on the taxpayer and failed to reward hitting cost or schedule targets. The consequences were stark: the £15 billion budget earmarked in 2020 for Phase 1 main civils had been exhausted by 2024, with the work still far from finished. The new arrangements replace that structure with payments designed to reward efficient, on-budget delivery, though HS2 declined to disclose the value of either agreement.

The reset supports Wild's £93.2 billion cost ambition, against a government estimate in May that put the eventual bill between £87.7 billion and £102.7 billion. First services between Old Oak Common and Birmingham are now projected no earlier than 2036, and potentially as late as 2039.

Wild called the deals a significant step forward while cautioning that more remains to be done. Construction is accelerating, with all 46 miles of twin-bore tunnels between Old Oak Common and Birmingham now excavated and the workforce exceeding 30,000. A full rebaselining of budget and timetable is due in spring 2027.