QBCC rules Lower Wonga solar farm construction firm owes $1.3m

A construction company working on the $130m Lower Wonga solar farm has been found by the state watchdog to owe one of its subbies more than a million dollars.

A construction company on the Woolooga Solar farm at Lower Wonga has been found to owe one of its subcontractors $1.3m in unpaid work following a QBCC adjudication.

A construction company working on the Lower Wonga solar farm has been ordered to pay $1.3m by the industry watchdog following a successful claim by a subcontractor.

Sunshine Coast-based Palmgrove Holdings, trading as Carruthers Contracting, asked the Queensland Building and Construction Commission to adjudicate its claims PCL Constructors Pacific Rim owed it $3.25m for work at the solar farm.

The QBCC found in favour of Carruthers Contracting on Friday, ruling PCL owed it $1.3m in unpaid work.

In the ruling published on the QBCC’s website, adjudicator Edward Smithies rejected submissions by PCL the QBCC did not have jurisdiction to rule on the claim.

He agreed with more than two-thirds of Carruthers’ 34 claims about money owed for variations on the solar farm, determining PCL owed the company $923,468.12.

A QBCC adjudicator has found Carruthers Contracting is owed $1.3m for work on the Woolooga Solar farm following its claim against PCL Constructors. Picture: Patrick Woods.

Mr Smithies found another $437,916.42 was owed in contract works, while $175,156.61 was returned to PCL in back charges.

The $1.3m total included more than $118,000 in GST.

Mr Smithies said the amount was due to be paid on August 19.

PCL was ordered to cover the full costs of the adjudication too as Carruthers “had been substantially more successful” in their claims.

Carruthers Contracting and PCL Constructors been contacted for comment.

Lightsource BP, the developers behind the solar farm, declined to comment.

No suggestion of wrongdoing is made against Lightsource BP.