Misplaced Pages

#63936

34-439: Medupi was conceived as Project Alpha in 2007, with only three units planned to total 2,292 MW and estimated cost of R32 billion. The design was changed at a late stage in 2007 and doubled in size to 4,584 MW. The boilers were envisaged to be supercritical in type, which would make them 38% more effective than other Eskom power stations. A dry cooled system was also intended to use less water than other coal-fired power stations in

68-560: A 4.5 MW pump station and 46 km pipeline extracting from the Mokolo Dam . Phase 1 of this project was commissioned in 2015. 174 Kilometres of high voltage transmission lines was required from Medupi to the Borutho substation near Mokopane . Construction occurred between November 2015 till the end of 2017. The dates for full commercial operation were shifted numerous times mostly due to labour disputes such as: On 9 August 2021, in

102-459: A ballooning budget and a project that has run far behind schedule, the transit center was poorly constructed and has not become operational due to poor design and workmanship. In April 2014, The Washington Post published an exposé on Parsons Brinckerhoff's troubled transit center, reporting that an independent report has found that the public would be at risk due to falling concrete and needs a significant redesign and upgrades. Parsons Brinckerhoff

136-466: A decade. Parsons Brinckerhoff WSP USA , formerly Parsons Brinckerhoff , is an American multinational engineering and design firm. The firm operates in the fields of strategic consulting, planning, engineering, construction management, energy, infrastructure and community planning. It is a subsidiary of WSP Global . In 2013, the company was named the tenth largest U.S.-based engineering/design firm by Engineering News Record . In 2020, it

170-473: A forensic probe into the delays and cost overruns on the completion of Kusile and Medupi Power Stations. The Medupi and Kusile power stations were constructed to increase the electricity generation capacity of South Africa. Insufficient electricity generation had resulted in the ongoing South African energy crisis starting in 2007. This has resulted in years of rolling blackouts. As of 11 February 2019, Eskom reinstated load-shedding due to ongoing strain on

204-502: A master plan update for San Antonio International Airport . Parsons Brinckerhoff partnered with rival engineering firm Bechtel to build the troubled Big Dig in Boston, Massachusetts. The Big Dig, or Central Artery/Tunnel project as it was officially known, was intended to replace an elevated Interstate freeway and connecting roads with a tunnel system underneath Boston. The project was beset with bad engineering, shoddy workmanship, and

238-619: A takeover bid for Opus International Consultants . In July 2018, WSP announced its intention to buy Berger Group Holdings Inc., parent of the group of companies operating under the name of Louis Berger Group , a Morristown, N.J.-based international professional-services firm, for $ 400 million. In February 2020, WSP acquired US-based environmental consulting firm LT Environmental (LTE). On December 3, 2020, WSP acquired Canadian-based geotechnical, earth-science, and environmental consulting firm Golder for $ 1.14 billion. On June 1, 2022, WSP announced an agreement of sale with Wood Group plc for

272-534: A wholly owned subsidiary of WSP Global. On January 10, 2017, it was announced that the brand Parsons Brinckerhoff would be retired and combined into the parent company, WSP Global. WSP|Parsons Brinckerhoff is now called WSP. Following the acquisition of Louis Berger Group by WSP Global in 2018 for $ 400 million, the operations of Louis Berger Group in the United States were merged with WSP USA's. WSP USA acquired two US-based environmental consulting firms over

306-649: Is also involved with the redevelopment of LaGuardia Airport in New York City, announced in 2015, with an expected completion date of 2022. In 2018, it was selected as the lead firm for the Charlotte Douglas International Airport Airfield Expansion, with a targeted completion of 2022. It is working on the new Dallas Fort Worth International Airport Southwest End-Around Taxiway, with an expected completion date of 2021. In 2018, it started working on

340-605: The Balfour Beatty plc. In October 2010 Balfour Beatty acquired Halsall Associates, which became a subsidiary of Parsons Brinckerhoff and part of its Canadian operations. On October 31, 2014, Balfour Beatty sold Parsons Brinckerhoff to WSP Global . In 2017 Parsons Brinckerhoff changed its name to WSP USA. On September 3, 2014, it was announced that WSP Global had made an offer to purchase Parsons Brinckerhoff from Balfour Beatty plc for US$ 1.24 billion. The transaction closed on October 31, 2014 and Parsons Brinckerhoff became

374-1051: The Scheldt Tunnel in Antwerp , Belgium (1933); The Buzzards Bay Railroad Bridge on Cape Cod, Massachusetts (1935); The 1939 World's Fair in New York City; the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey (1957); the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel in Virginia (1957); the Pell Bridge in Newport, Rhode Island (1969); the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (United States) (1980); the I-95 / Fort McHenry Tunnel (1980);

SECTION 10

#1732797808064

408-774: The U.S. 25E Cumberland Gap Tunnel at the Tennessee/Kentucky border, the H-3 Highway in Oahu, Hawaii (1997); the Sabiya Power Station in Kuwait (2000) and the rapid transit systems of San Francisco (1972); Atlanta (1979); Singapore (1987); Taipei (1996); and Caracas (1983). Parsons Brinckerhoff was acquired by Balfour Beatty in October 2009 and operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of

442-548: The built environment . It was created in 2012, following Montreal-based Genivar 's takeover of British firm WSP Group plc. It is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange . After the purchase of New York-headquartered professional services firm Parsons Brinckerhoff in October 2014, WSP effectively became one of the largest professional services firms in the world, with approximately 73,300 employees in 500 offices serving in 40 countries. Williams Sale Partnership

476-519: The Environment & Infrastructure group (E&I) part of its business. The £1.6 bn acquisition was concluded in September 2022. In August 2022, WSP made an unsuccessful takeover offer to purchase RPS Group for £591 million. In September 2022, RPS received a counter takeover offer from Tetra Tech for £636 million with WSP opting not to increase its bid. RPS' shareholders voted to accept

510-435: The common brand of WSP. In October 2014, WSP completed the purchase of New York-headquartered professional services firm Parsons Brinckerhoff from Balfour Beatty for US$ 1.24 billion. The company has a network of approximately 170 offices and nearly 13,500 employees on five continents and became a wholly owned independent subsidiary. Together, WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff is one of the largest professional services firms in

544-504: The cost of Medupi was independently estimated at R234 billion (2019 Rands). Some of the primary reasons for the cost escalation was the importing of components affected by a fluctuating Rand exchange rate, redesigns and rework as well as labour disputes and standing time. Due to cost escalations the African Development Bank has stated that they do not expect the power plant to produce a positive financial return over

578-538: The course of a railway in China from Hankow (Wuhan) to Canton (Guangzhou), a line that is also still in use today. In 1906, Henry M. Brinckerhoff , a highway engineer, brought his expertise in electric railways to the firm. He is known for his co-invention of the third rail. The firm has worked on some of the most notable infrastructure projects of the 20th century, including: the Detroit–Windsor Tunnel (1930);

612-516: The course of its lifetime. The building of this power station attracted various criticisms. Critics alleged that the government endorsed the project due to the ruling party, the African National Congress holding a 25% share of a package and stood to make a profit of close to 1 billion Rand. Backers of the project argued that new generation coal plants was needed. Other critics argued that effective management of coal supplies

646-478: The death of an automobile passenger as a poor ceiling design caused a tunnel roof section to collapse on a car in the tunnel, crushing the victim. The Big Dig was years over schedule and engineering costs to several times of Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff's original estimates, from $ 8 Billion to in excess of $ 24 Billion. Due to the poor construction, it has been estimated that the Big Dig's life span will be far short of

680-440: The fleet. Initial project costing was estimated at R69 billion but that was updated to approximately R80 billion by 2007. Parsons Brinckerhoff was appointed as the project engineer to oversee all construction. The power station has six boilers each powering 794 MW turbines, producing 4,584 MW in total. When completed, Medupi became the largest dry-cooled coal-fired power station in the world. Medupi's GE Steam Power Systems

714-514: The national grid from failing older power stations. The blackouts were as severe as those of 2015, removing up to 4,000 MW of demand from the national grid, and negatively impacted the economy. In December 2019, unusually heavy flooding and rain triggered failures at the Medupi plant and forced Eskom to cut 6,000 MW from the national power grid, the biggest power cuts in South Africa in

SECTION 20

#1732797808064

748-539: The next two years: Ecology & Environment (E & E) in 2019, and LT Environmental in 2020. In 2021, WSP purchased Golder Associates, and in 2022 WSP acquired Wood PLC’s Environment & Infrastructure Solutions, Inc. business. The firm is involved in Long Island Rail Road 's East Side Access to Grand Central Terminal in New York City , with a planned opening of December 2022. It

782-503: The original specification that taxpayers paid for. The tunnels still have "thousands of leaks" and substandard materials. Subsequent to the fatal tunnel ceiling collapse, light fixtures have been found to have been incorrectly installed and corroding, posing a risk of failure and falling to the tunnel roadway. Parsons Brinckerhoff was also the lead engineering firm to build the Silver Spring, Maryland transportation center. Despite

816-399: The second week after Eskom announced that Medupi had attained commercial operation, Medupi Unit 4 was extensively damaged in a hydrogen explosion which caused a loss of 700 MW in generating capacity. The cost of repair was estimated at up to R2 billion, or up to R40 billion. The initial expected cost of R80 billion (2007 Rands), was revised to R154 billion (2013 Rands). By 2019,

850-465: The world with approximately 32,000 employees in 500 offices serving 39 countries. In early 2015, WSP announced plans to expand to 45,000 employees by 2020. In October 2016, WSP purchased Mouchel Consulting from the Kier Group for approximately £75 million. In January 2017, WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff announced that it would assume the name "WSP", effective from May 2017. In August 2017, WSP made

884-551: The world, with approximately 31,500 employees in 500 offices serving 39 countries. Founded in 1885 in New York City by civil engineer William Barclay Parsons , among Parsons Brinckerhoff's earliest projects was the original IRT line of the New York City Subway , designed by Parsons Brinckerhoff and opened in 1904. Parsons Brinckerhoff also designed the Cape Cod Canal , which opened in 1914 and charted

918-408: Was awarded a Global Project Excellence Gold Award at the 2016 IPMA Project Excellence Awards. Alstom provided the steam turbines, whilst Hitachi provided the super critical boilers. Medupi is supplied with coal from Exxaro 's Grootegeluk coal mine , located north of the site. Eskom placed a contract with Exxaro to supply 14.6 MT of coal per year for 40 years. Completion of the first two units

952-406: Was backed by WSP's board of directors as well as investors holding 37% of the company's shares, and the takeover was completed on 1 August 2012. This merger created a professional-services firm with approximately 15,000 employees, working in over 300 offices worldwide. The company reorganised its corporate structure on 1 January 2014, to create a parent company named WSP Global Inc. and adopted

986-859: Was established in 1969 in England by Chris Cole, Geoffrey Williams, John Sale, and Geoffrey Middleton. In 1976, it was a founding member of the Building Services Research and Information Association ( BSRIA ). It was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1987. In the 1990s, the company expanded both domestically and internationally, forming WSP Asia in 1995, incorporating Graham Group and T P O'Sullivan and Partners in 1997, acquiring US practices Cantor Seinuk and Flack + Kurtz in 2000, as well as buying Jacobson & Widmark (J&W) in Sweden in 2001 (J&W

1020-473: Was expected by 2012 but various delays impacted progress. The first 794 MW unit (no 6) was commissioned and handed over to Eskom Generation on 23 August 2015. Units 5 to 1 was completed at approximately nine-month intervals thereafter. In order to meet the growing demand for power generation and mining activities in the Lephalale area, two main bulk raw water transfer systems were also required. This comprised

1054-726: Was founded in 1938), LT Consultants Oyj and EMP Projects Oyj in Finland in 2003 and PHB Group in the UAE in 2005. After acquiring three firms and expanding geographically in 1993, the name of the Canadian firm GBGM was changed to Genivar Inc. In August 2011, Genivar Inc. and Montreal-based architectural firm ARCOP announced an alliance. On 7 June 2012, Genivar made a friendly takeover cash offer of £ 278 million ( C$ 442 million) for WSP Group plc, headquartered in London . The offer

Medupi Power Station - Misplaced Pages Continue

1088-636: Was needed to existing stations. The African Development Bank lent $ 500 million for the project in 2008. In 2010, the World Bank agreed to lend South Africa $ 3.75 billion to assist with several energy projects, with $ 3.05 billion allocated for completion. The approval of the World Bank loan drew criticism for supporting increased global emissions of greenhouse gases . By 2018, the government's Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan announced

1122-404: Was part of a lawsuit for Lane Cove Tunnel, Sydney, Australia. The claim by AMP Capital Investors for Australian $ 144 million was settled in September 2014. The basis of the claim was 'Misleading and defective conduct' but the settlement is on confidential terms with no admission of liability. WSP Global WSP Group plc WSP Global Inc. is a Canadian consulting firm working mostly in

1156-465: Was ranked #7 of the Top 500 Design Firms and #2 of the Top 100 Pure Designers by the same magazine. On October 31, 2014, Parsons Brinckerhoff became a wholly owned independent subsidiary of WSP Global , a Canadian-based professional services firm. Parsons Brinckerhoff was renamed to WSP|Parsons Brinckerhoff, then to WSP in 2017. Part of WSP Global, WSP USA is one of the largest professional services firms in

#63936