Transdev to accept loss of €1.3bn Luas contract after taking legal advice – The Irish Times

The current operator of the Luas, Transdev, will accept the decision to award the €1.3 billion contract for the running of the service to a different company, having previously taken legal advice on the matter.

Transdev Dublin Light Rail was unsuccessful in a bid to retain the operations and maintenance contract despite having 22 years’ experience of running the service.

The contract is worth €1.3 billion for the initial term of seven years, with an option to extend for a further six years.

A joint venture between French transport company Keolis and British operations firm Amey will run the service from September, it emerged in February.

Following confirmation by State bodies Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) and the National Transport Authority (NTA) of the awarding of the contract to KeolisAmey in March, Transdev told staff that it was taking legal advice as part of a review of the decision.

The company has now indicated it will work with State authorities to pass on the running of the service to KeolisAmey.

Responding to a query from The Irish Times, Transdev said the company “has made the decision to accept the award of the Luas contract to an alternative operator”.

Transdev said it “will work with TII to ensure a smooth transition for the benefit of Luas customers and the client”.

In a letter to staff in March, Transdev Dublin’s chief executive Ben Dwars had said Transdev was “continuing to assess the outcome of the tender process in detail”.

Dwars explained this was being done “with the support of our legal advisers and within the rights and timelines available to bidders under the applicable public procurement framework”.

Should any legal action have been taken, the review of the tender would have been carried out by the High Court, but it is understood no judicial proceedings were instigated by any parties.

Any judicial review on the matter would examine the legality of a decision made by TII and NTA, according to legal sources.

Any review would determine whether the decision-making process was flawed, not the merits of the decision or bids, and a stay could be placed on the decision during a review.

KeolisAmey, the French-British joint venture, is split 65 to 35 in favour of the French transportation company.

The two companies have run the Docklands Light Railway in London since 2014 as part of a separate joint venture led out by the French company. They were recently awarded a new eight-year contract for the service. They also run Manchester’s Metrolink network.

It is expected the vast majority of Luas staff will transfer to KeolisAmey in accordance with the European Union regulations on the transfer of undertakings.

Among the other bidders was a joint venture between two infrastructure giants, Italy’s Azienda Trasporti Milanesi and French-listed Alstom.