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MP questions Tate Modern extension delays after government’s ‘amber-red’ warning
CM Staff
Opening of the Tate Modern extension has been delayed. Image: Matt Brown/Flickr
The £215m Tate Modern extension was rated “amber-red” in the latest review by the government’s Major Projects Authority – a designation that means “successful delivery of the project is in doubt, with major risks or issues apparent in a number of key areas”.
And a Tate Modern spokesperson has indicated that the project will shortly go public on a new, upwardly-revised cost estimate.
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Development manager Stanhope, which has been associated with Tate Modern since its inception, has reportedly been appointed in a “troubleshooting role” to work alongside construction manager Mace, although the spokesman said that the firm was simply advising the directors and trustees on the development.
However, according to reports in the Architects’ Journal and Building, this move has also involved a diminution of the role played by project manager Gardiner & Theobald.
The MPA project update, published in May 2014 but compiled in September 2013, was the trigger for Labour MP and shadow minister for culture, media and sport Helen Goodman to question culture secretary Ed Vaizey about progress on the project in a written parliamentary question in April.
“I’m saying to the minister, this is partly a question of taxpayer’s money. But it’s also one of your major projects, and it seems to be either late or going off-track. So I’m looking for answers along with everyone else.”
Helen Goodman MP
The 2014 report did not specify a completion date, while the equivalent report a year earlier – published in May 2013 – said that the project would open “mid-May to mid-September 2015” and did not carry a traffic light code at all.
Goodman told CM: “I happened to notice the Tate Modern completion date had gone backwards, so I put down a couple of Parliamentary questions asking why.
“The minister said there were no problems and it had always been due to open in 2016 but then the AJ report [on 8 August] turned up more information.
“So I’m really saying to the minister, this is partly a question of taxpayer’s money [a £50m grant], although I realise the Tate raised the majority itself.
“But it’s also one of your major projects, and it seems to be either late or going off-track. So I’m looking for answers along with everyone else.”
Goodman has pledged to pick up the issue after the summer recess.
However, a Tate Modern spokesperson downplayed the significance of the MPA’s September 2013 amber-red warning, saying: “It is common for large scale, high cost projects to have Delivery Confidence Assessments which reflect their complexity. All of the points identified in the September 2013 update have been successfully addressed.”
Asked about the project’s budget, the spokesperson said:”As you would expect with a major building project of this scale, there are regular adjustments to cost estimates and we will announce further details in due course.”
The 11-storey new build extension, designed by Swiss architect Herzog & de Meuron, was initially scheduled to complete in 2013. However, according to Wikipedia, 2016 has been the publicised opening date since 2011/12. The Tate Modern’s website currently says that the scheduled opening date is December 2016.
A project description posted on the website of structural engineer Ramboll gives some clues as to the complications faced by the project team. It says:
”Tate Modern II rises in a truncated twisting pyramid, with sharp corners and inward creases, breaking the facades into interesting geometries…”
“…The raking steel frame of the tower is encased in concrete, providing the monolithic feel and finish requested by the architect as well as fire protection. Precast waterproof concrete panels supporting the brick outer cladding, and including window inserts, constitute the independent loadbearing facades. The design resolves the challenges of working with five differently-raked planes as well as vertical ones.”
An up-to-date report on construction progress at the extremely challenging site has also been posted on the website of Better Bankside, the area’s Business Improvement District.
The November/December 2025 issue of Construction Management magazine is now available to read in digital format.
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