Value of construction disputes in Middle East jumps to $86mln

Value of construction disputes in Middle East jumps to $86mln

The value of construction disputes of projects in the Middle East went up by 38 percent in 2020 thanks to the coronavirus pandemic that impacted many high-profile projects in the region. The average value of disputes in the Middle East increased from $62 million in 2019 to $86 million in 2020. The length of disputes decreased from 17 months in 2019 to 15.5 months in 2020, Netherlands-based global consultancy firm Arcadis said in its latest construction disputes report. The annual report is based on feedback from survey respondents, global construction disputes handled by Arcadis in 2020 and opinions from industry experts. "This decrease may be attributed to the parties' collaborative approach to enable successful dispute resolution and their preference to avoid a 'wait-and-see approach' when they believe they have a strong case coupled with their need to maintain cashflow,“ the report noted. The annual report is based on feedback from survey respondents, global construction disputes handled by Arcadis in 2020 and opinions from industry experts. According to the report, most of the disputes in 2020 came from building projects in sectors such as education, healthcare, retail, commercial and real estate developments. Many building projects, including Dubai Expo 2020 or the