Multi-million dollar claim for fired subway builder

Some in the industry raised their eyebrows when Chinese CRTG won the tender in 2019 to build working tunnels for the new subway in Stockholm. Critics argued that the winning bid, which was roughly 40 percent below the next lowest bid, was oddly low. Byggnads flagged that the working environment could suffer.

The fears would later come true. The Swedish Work Environment Authority repeatedly pointed out significant deficiencies, and the client Region Stockholm introduced numerous protective shutdowns. Last spring, the region's patience ran out and the New Subway Administration canceled the contract.

- No one has died, but with the deficiencies we see in the workplace now, the risks to both life and health are far too great, said head of administration Per Ling-Vannerus at the time.

Now Nyhetsbyrån Siren writes that CRTG is once again being chased by the Crown Enforcement Agency, which is demanding the company for multi-million sums. This time it is the industry giant Peab and Nacka municipality's insurance company that want help to collect unpaid debts.

Peab's asphalt company demands just over 2.4 million, while municipal Nacka water and waste wants 1.9 million kroner. CRTG disputes the claims and the cases will now be settled in court.

Last spring, Aftonbladet reported that the company had debts of approximately SEK 15 million with the Kronofogden since several different companies submitted claims. A few months before that, CRTG was sued for 7.9 million by a concrete contractor.

CRTG is a subsidiary of CRCC, China Railway Construction Corporation. The parent company is on Ukraine's list of companies that help Russia. In 2020, the CRCC was blacklisted by the United States due to its close ties to the Chinese military. In 2023 it emerged that the CRCC had held secret talks about building a tunnel from Russia to Crimea.