韩国国土部就加德岛新机场超6000亿韩元成本上调申请法律解释

South Korea's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has asked the Ministry of Government Legislation for a formal legal interpretation on whether surging construction costs for the Gadeokdo New Airport site preparation project can be reflected in the contract amount.
The ministry said on the 31st that it submitted the request on the 27th, seeking an interpretation of provisions in the enforcement decree of the State Contract Act that govern contract price adjustments tied to price fluctuations.
Cost increases identified so far have exceeded 600 billion won as raw material prices soared following the outbreak of the Iran war. Industry attention is focused on whether the ministry can placate regional builders, who have threatened to pull out of the consortium unless construction costs are brought in line with reality, while still keeping to the schedule of breaking ground this year.
According to industry sources, the core question put to the legislation ministry is whether increases in raw material, fuel and labor costs that occurred after the tender notice but before the signing of the main contract can be reflected in the contract amount. The enforcement decree of the State Contract Act generally allows a contract price adjustment when 90 days have passed from the contract signing date and the item or index adjustment rate has moved by 3% or more. Adjustments are also possible before 90 days have elapsed if circumstances such as natural disasters or sharp jumps in raw material prices make contract performance difficult. The problem is that the rules are unclear on whether cost increases that emerged after bidding can be reflected in the contract amount before the main contract has been signed.
The government issued a tender notice for the Gadeokdo New Airport site preparation project last December, with a total project cost of 10.7 trillion won and a construction period of 106 months. Two rounds of bidding in January and February drew only the Daewoo Engineering & Construction consortium, and both failed for lack of competition. In February, the government designated the consortium as the counterparty for a negotiated contract. The consortium has since proceeded with follow-up steps including basic design work and offshore ground surveys.
But the war between the United States and Iran, which broke out shortly after the bidding, sent international oil prices and the prices of key materials such as steel and cement sharply higher. Industry tallies show the construction cost index rose 5.8% from the tender notice at the end of last year through June this year. Applied directly to the total project cost, that translates into more than 620 billion won in additional expenses. Industry officials say fuel and material cost increases weigh more heavily on this project than on other civil engineering work, given that large-scale offshore landfill and soft ground treatment require a high share of vessels and heavy equipment.
The 13 builders from Busan and Gyeongsangnam Province listed in the consortium have taken the position that they will consider withdrawing unless construction costs are brought in line with reality. Their combined stake amounts to about 13% of the consortium. The regional firms say each would face losses in the billions of won if the work proceeds at the current project cost level, and they have been pressing the government and Daewoo Engineering & Construction for measures since last month.
The land ministry plans to wrap up the legal interpretation and construction cost negotiations by September, sign the main contract in October, and hold a groundbreaking ceremony for the initial portion of the work at the Gadeokdo site in November. Even if the legislation ministry rules that the increases can be reflected, however, the full 620 billion won would not simply be added. The government is examining a plan to select and reflect only those portions of the increases in fuel, raw material and maritime shipping costs stemming from the Middle East war that the contractor could not reasonably have anticipated. "We are negotiating along the lines of excluding natural price increases and reflecting in the contract increase only the portions that spiked unusually fast because of the war," a land ministry official said.