Probuild collapse: Darling Harbour’s The Ribbon development in doubt
One expert has warned that one of Sydney’s major new landmarks must not sit dormant as the city fights to attract tourists again.
One of Sydney’s newest landmarks has been left sitting as a building site after a major Australian construction company collapsed, with warnings the city “cannot afford” for the project to remain incomplete.
A total of 18 building businesses, including Probuild which was responsible for the redevelopment of the Darling Harbour site called The Ribbon, went under two weeks ago after their South African parent company pulled all its financial support.
It left almost $5 billion worth of high-profile projects across the country in limbo, although there are reports that the Melbourne sites are being thrown a lifeline with Sydney-based builder Roberts Co looking to take over.
Probuild was in charge of The Ribbon, on the eastern edge of Darling Harbour in Sydney, with the $1 billion accommodation and entertainment set to include the W Sydney hotel across 25 floors, a state-of-the-art IMAX Theatre, retail and entertainment spaces and 10,000sq m of renewed and enhanced public domain.
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The project, which was started in 2016, was close to completion before the collapse, according to developer Greaton.
Probuild had taken over the project after the previous builder in charge went into administration.
But Paul Nicolaou, the executive director of Business Sydney, said answers were needed on what was happening with the landmark project.
“As we emerge from Omicron and begin rebuilding our city’s economy and international reputation, we cannot afford to have major building projects sitting incomplete and dormant, especially in such important tourist destinations like Darling Harbour,” he told The Daily Telegraph.
“Completion of this fabulous addition to the city’s skyline and the visitor economy must be sorted out as soon as possible as Sydney competes with other domestic and international destinations for tourists and to stimulate the economy of this valuable precinct on the edge of the CBD.”
A Greaton spokesperson said it was working with administrators Deloitte to “complete the final components of the building as soon as possible”.
Administrators have revealed they are facing a “nightmarish” situation dealing with the company collapse with at least 2300 individual creditors identified so far and more than $14 million owed to 784 workers.
Meanwhile, an insolvency expert warned the construction sector was a “bubble waiting to burst” after the Probuild collapse and said more companies will go under in the coming months.
Attempting to deliver fixed price contracts as prices skyrocket is a real concern for the industry, cautioned Andrew Spring, partner at insolvency specialist Jirsch Sutherland, predicting a difficult 12 months ahead.
“The rising prices of delivering projects, where there’s a fixed stream of income, means more losses made on projects are likely,” he said.
“And without adequate reserves to meet or fund losses, it’s likely more and more construction companies are going to be out of whack, which will ultimately lead to more insolvency appointments.”
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