I am dealing with an NEC3 TSC Option A. The Contract includes option X1. The Contractor has now submitted a CE under clause X19.10(6) for increased pricing costs claiming they could not have been foreseen this at the time the contract was entered into in when the market was stable and now there is unprecedented volatility in the market. Where does an Employer stand on such a claim? It is appreciated costs have risen significantly, but I am struggling to see how unforeseen price increases fit as CE under X19 or clause 60. Any thoughts on this would be most welcome.
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Clause X19.10(6) does not seem suitable or even applicable, as it refers to events that “stop” the Contractor from completing a Task or completing it by the Task Completion Date. It could potentially be used e.g. for a situation that it is impossible or difficult to source materials for reasons beyond the control of the Parties; however, here the problem is the cost, and not the availability.
Since X1 applies, there should be a recovery route for the Contractor, although the level would depend on the indices chosen, base date etc. Nonetheless, in this context, it is probably the only route.
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Thanks once again Peter-much appreciated. That is exactly what I thought-simply because the contract is more costly, there is no event that has actually stopped the works.
No worries, I hope you get this resolved.