THE COMPANY that built the James Joyce Bridge in Dublin is not entitled to an additional €6.4 million for its work from the city council, a High Court judge has ruled.

Mr Justice Liam McKechnie yesterday refused to set aside an arbitrator’s decision rejecting claims by Carillion Irishenco for costs incurred as a result of additional steel fabrication works associated with building the bridge.

The case arose after a dispute between Carillion and the council about the additional fabrication works.

Carillion had subcontracted the steelwork fabrication and erection to Harland and Wolfe (HW) Heavy Industries Ltd, which encountered significant difficulties in making welds to a particular form of joint and refused to proceed further until the engineering design was amended. An alternative design was produced but this also led to significant additional costs, Carillion claimed.

The council denied liability for the costs. The matter went to arbitration and arbitrator John Higgins decided in July 2007 Carillion was not entitled to be paid any additional costs.

Yesterday the judge found that no injustice had been done by the finding but added he would remit the matter to the arbitrator to deal with costs and interest issues.

The James Joyce Bridge was designed by Santiago Calatrava Valls. Roughan O’Donovan were appointed consulting engineers and Carillion Irishenco entered into a contract with Dublin City Council to construct the bridge which was opened in 2003.