Five hundred workers at the Muskrat Falls hydro project under construction in Labrador in Canada are being sent home after Nalcor Energy issued a stop work order to the Canadian subsidiary of Italian construction firm Astaldi.
According to reports from CBC News, Stan Marshall, CEO of Nalcor, said in a statement that the energy corporation had been closely monitoring Astaldi's financial situation and had decided to direct the firm to stop work due to its “inability to continue to pay its workers”. He said Nalcor was taking the action “to minimize the financial harm placed upon the workers by Astaldi” and is arranging for the workers who live at the site to be sent home.
Media reports say that Astaldi has in recent weeks been seeking further finance for its work on the hydro project, but Nalcor has said that the construction firm is responsible for any debts owed to subcontractors and suppliers.
The action is not expected to have any impact on the activities of other contractors and workers on site, and Marshall has reportedly indicated there is a Plan B in place to ensure the project keeps moving forward.
The 824MW project is expected to start generating first power in 2019. It is the first phase of the Lower Churchill Project.
Astaldi was responsible for the construction of the powerhouse, intake and spillway civil works for the Muskrat Falls generation facility.
