The Forth Replacement Crossing (FRC) project is delivering a significant boost to the Scottish construction sector, with over £20 million worth of sub-contracts now awarded to 118 Scottish firms.

And with 134 other further sub-contracts on the project currently being advertised there is likely to be significant further benefit to the industry during the five year construction process.

Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment Alex Neil revealed the figures as he visited the FRC construction site at North Queensferry.

Mr Neil said: "I am delighted to see that local Scottish firms have already benefited to the tune of £20 million from opportunities created by the Forth Replacement Crossing project.

"The project is expected to support over 1,200 new jobs during its construction and protect up to Scottish 3,000 jobs that would otherwise be at risk if the current Forth Road Bridge had to close without a replacement crossing in place.

"The FRC is an absolutely essential project for Scotland's sustainable economic growth. It is on schedule and within budget to open in 2016 and will safeguard a vital link in the country's transport infrastructure, create and sustain thousands of Scottish jobs and deliver huge benefits to the construction industry in particular.

He added: "Scotland's economy is strengthening and continued progress on this project clearly demonstrates that the Scottish Government's robust actions on capital investment and supporting jobs are delivering real results."

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Mr Neil also took the opportunity to highlight the planned crossing's increased resilience to bad weather: "One of the added benefits of the FRC will be its improved resilience compared to the existing Forth Road Bridge. The new crossing will incorporate state of the art wind-shielding to ensure it will remain open to traffic during the sort of extreme high winds that shut the road bridge earlier in December, meaning less diversions and disruption for motorists and the travelling public.

"This type of wind-shielding technology is used on the Second Severn Crossing which, to date, has never had to close due to wind and our expectation is that if the road network is functioning, the FRC will be open and operational."

The British Chambers of Commerce estimated the additional benefits through supply chain and sub-contract opportunities for Scottish businesses will be worth around £6 billion to the Scottish economy, and it is also estimated the project will protect an estimated £1.3 billion in revenues.

The FRC Principal Contract to build the new crossing and approach roads north/south of the Firth of Forth, was awarded in April 2011 to FCBC (Forth Crossing Bridge Constructors) for £790m (excluding VAT and inflation), significantly below the expected cost range of £0.9 to £1.2 billion.

The total estimated cost of the FRC project, including VAT and allowing for inflation, is expected to be £1.45 to £1.6 billion (at 2016 prices).

While tendering legislation demands that the construction of the project be open to international competition the contractors are obliged to advertise sub-contract and supply opportunities through the Public Contracts Scotland website.

There are currently 134 Forth Replacement Crossing sub-contracts advertised on the Public Contracts Scotland website, and initial feedback from the prime contractors is that it has proven to be extremely useful in identifying local companies to carry out work.

To inform and encourage the involvement of local contractors, an FRC 'Meet the Buyer' day took place in August and was well attended by a range of local businesses and facilitated by staff from Transport Scotland and Public Contracts Scotland.

The Public Contracts Scotland portal was designed to deliver an open and transparent procurement resource for public sector bodies - its use for advertising subcontracting opportunities related to the Forth replacement crossing is a significant development in its functionality. The portal offers a single point of entry to Scotland's biggest infrastructure project, ensuring Scottish-based businesses, particularly SMEs, are able to access and compete for contracts, which is vital for sustainable local economic growth.

(GK)