Three fit-out firms vie for troubled £62m Shell Centre

Three fit-out firms are in the running for the final £10m stage of the troubled £62m refurbishment of the Shell Centre in London.

Overbury, StructureTone and Spie Matthew Hall are all believed to be on a shortlist to take over the job after the oil firm terminated its contract with ISG in September. It is understood that Modus Group may also be in the frame.

Work on the 26-storey tower was halted in September after a dispute between ISG and Shell over the disruption caused by building work and the fact it had fallen behind schedule. According to ISG’s website, completion was intended for early 2009 and the company is thought to have changed its staff on the 345,000ft2 job a number of times.

According to sources close to the project, the contract could be awarded by the end of February. The refurbishment is part of a larger development of the Shell Centre, which is situated on London’s south bank.

Meanwhile, a source close to the project said Shell has appointed construction claim specialist Hill International to advise it on any claim that ISG could make. The source said Shell had been forced to appoint Hill in December after ISG suggested it might make a legal challenge.

On the other side, ISG has reportedly drafted in Turner & Townsend to assess the possibility of mounting a claim against its former client.

Shell declined to comment on the names of the contractors in the frame or whether it had appointed Hill International, which itself was unavailable for comment. ISG and T&T were also unavailable for comment.

Spie Matthew Hall is working on a £100m refurbishment job at the Savoy hotel after it was brought in by Mace and Gardiner & Theobald to replace the original M&E contractor, EI WHS. Mace is also working as project manager for Shell alongside G&T, which is acting as QS.