10 Billion Swiss Franc Project to Build World’s Longest Railway Tunnel Ahead of Schedule
By Matthias Scherer and Samuel Moss (Lalive)
An acceleration of the drilling and construction of the Gotthard Base Tunnel over the past years has left its planners faced with the unusual prospect of the project being completed a year ahead of schedule. Work on the 57 km long railway tunnel through the Swiss alps, the longest in the world, was scheduled to be completed in 2017. However, following faster than anticipated progress in the excavation and construction of the tunnel, the consortium of companies responsible for the second phase of the works, the installation of the railway infrastructure, will propose the possibility of a 2016 hand-over date.
The Gotthard Base Tunnel is part of [...]
Major Swiss Contractor To Be Taken Over by Indian Hindustan Construction Company
Swiss construction companies have recently become the targets of take-overs by foreign contractors or investors. The first such acquisition was that of Losinger Group by the French construction giant Bouygues. The long-lasting battle between the UK investment fund Laxey and the largest Swiss construction group, Implenia, however ended differently, when Laxey sold its shareholdings after having failed to take over the Swiss group. Following Laxey’s withdrawal, the Swiss Federal Supreme Court confirmed the Swiss financial markets regulator’s ruling that Laxey had breached the Federal Stock Exchange Act when it failed to disclose that it had acquired a substantial stake in Implenia. Crimina [...]
Litigating a dispute with French connections – the rule of exorbitant jurisdiction applied by the French courts
- By Gauthier Van Nieuwenhuyse,
for Salans
Continuing our discussion on issues to consider when litigating a dispute with French connections (see our last post “A Growing Trend In French Construction Law? The Recognition of Mandatory Rules by the Court of Cassation”), the following contribution highlights a further issue to be considered by parties to a construction contract when litigating as, or with, a French party to the contract.
Article 14 and Article 15 of the French civil code give the French Courts jurisdiction on the basis of, respectively, the claimant’s or the defendant’s French nationality. Accordingly, a French party can sue at home on any cause of action, whether or not the events in issue relate to [...]
Practical Aspects of Greenfield Projects in St. Petersburg
- By Karina Chichkanova,
for Salans
In recent years St. Petersburg has earned a reputation as an investment center with numerous greenfield projects. Greenfield projects involving the construction of industrial and sports facilities, transportation infrastructure, and residential developments, are underway. In the auto industry alone, four assembly plants have been built recently or are under construction (Toyota, Hyundai, General Motors, Nissan), and component and parts suppliers have a number of greenfield projects in progress. St. Petersburg has also established a technical-innovational type special economic zone, where a number of greenfield projects relating to the creation of innovative products are underway.
Underlying [...]
Private works contract and the owner’s legal guarantee obligation
- By Maxime Simonnet,
for Salans
Commentary on the decision rendered by the third civil chamber of the Cour de Cassation (French Supreme Court) on September 9, 2009
To protect the contractor from the risk of the owner’s insolvency, the law No. 94-475 of June 10, 1994 on the prevention and treatment of the difficulties encountered by contractors instituted the obligation for the owner to guarantee the contractor that the price of the ordered works would be paid.
This obligation, set out in Article 1799-1 of the Civil Code, concerns exclusively private works contracts, whose amount exceeds the minimum threshold fixed by the decree of July 30, 1999 at EUR 12,000.
It is mandatory, as Article 1799-1 of the Civil Cod [...]
A Growing Trend in French Construction Law? The Recognition of Mandatory Rules by the Court of Cassation
- By Joanne Clarke,
for Salans
In a judgment dated February 25, 2009 (Cour de cassation, civ. 3, 25 February 2009, No. P07-20.096), the Court of cassation, the highest court in the French judiciary, confirmed its previous decisions (Cour de cassation, chambre mixte, 30 November 2007, No. 06-14.006; Cour de cassation, 3e civ., 30 January 2008, No. 06-14.641) according to which certain provisions of the French Law on Subcontracting dated December 31, 1975 are mandatory, and as such are to be applied even when French law is not the governing law chosen by the parties to the contract.
For several years, there has been a debate among scholars on the classification of certain provisions of the 1975 Law as mandatory w [...]
The End of Licensing of Construction Related Activities in Russia?
- By Ekaterina Lapidus,
for Salans
Important changes in licensing regulations for engineering surveys, design and construction works were introduced by Federal Law No 148-FZ dated July 22, 2008 on “Amendments to the Russian Town-Planning Code and some legislative acts of the Russian Federation”.
As of January 1, 2010, licensing of engineering survey, design and construction activities, including developer (“zakazchik-zastroishchik”) functions will be completely abolished. Developers, engineers, designers and contractors will be allowed to continue such construction related activities under an SRO (self-regulating organization) mandate.
To explain what this means to organizations operating in the Russian Fe [...]
