Deficiencies have been discovered in some Chinese steel imported for the new $458 million Huntly bypass, says a contracting chief.
Major civil contractor Fulton Hogan is awaiting test results after discovering issues when it was building the massive infrastructure project for the NZ Transport Agency.
Robert Jones, Fulton Hogan's New Zealand contracting chief executive, said results from testing were not yet ready and it was too soon to judge the quality of materials used on the Huntly section of the Waikato Expressway.
"We did test a batch that we had suspicions about. That proved to have some deficiencies. But it doesn't mean to say that the whole lot is bad. Interpretation of the testing is not clear. There might be nothing wrong with the steel at Huntly," Jones said.
Fulton Hogan is working with HEB Construction on the Huntly job where steel was supplied by Steel & Tube.