Hollandia cuts secret Wembley deal

Wembley steelwork contractor Hollandia is understood to have made a secret agreement with Multiplex that it will complete its main work on the project by the end of the month, write the Building newsdesk.

The move comes as the Football Association said it had not received any legal claims from the contractor, even though Multiplex said last week that it would pursue client WNSL for £150m.

The Hollandia deal followed last week's crisis meeting over labour provider Fast Track's threat to lay off 200 steelworkers in a row over money. It is understood that Hollandia has agreed to complete major work by May in return for financial assistance in resolving the dispute.

Representatives from the GMB and Amicus unions were due to meet Hollandia this week to discuss working arrangements to step up the pace of the steelwork.

GMB regional organiser Tom Kelly said: "Hollandia wants to push to finish the job in the next month or so, and we are meeting them to discuss how this can be achieved."

Options are understood to include introducing a double day shift for workers.

Amicus representatives were also due to meet the project's main electrical contractor Honeywell on Wednesday to clarify its position on the project after it emerged that the firm had reduced its workforce by an estimated 170 over the past two weeks. Pipework contractor MJ Colston has also laid off about 80 workers from its agency staff.

Amicus representative Frank Westerman said he was meeting Honeywell and its subcontractors to clarify whether enough notice had been given for redundancies, and to find out how the firm was expecting to staff the commissioning phase.

This week the FA disputed claims that Multiplex was planning to sue client Wembley National Stadium Ltd for £150m, and noted its annoyance that Multiplex had taken the issue public.

A senior FA source denied that it had received any notice from the contractor regarding legal action. "We have had no word from Multiplex concerning any claim. We had an assurance from them that the project would be complete by June and then they hand us a construction programme that states it will be ready by the end of September."

Wembley consultants Foster and Partners, HOK Sport and Franklin + Andrews could play a key role in any legal battle that occurs between Multiplex and WNSL.

A source close to the process said it had kept a monthly "little black book" of design changes that had occurred on the scheme that would inform any legal process.

n Sources close to the Reuben brothers said the Australian contractor behind the Wembley fiasco would be unlikely to have a role at Stratford City if the Reubens succeed in taking control of the project from developer Westfield.