A landmark programme to deliver 14 new primary care centres across Ireland is set to begin following a €140m deal.
Construction will start immediately, with the centres being delivered as part of a 27-month programme.
New facilities will be built in Dublin, as well as at locations in Galway, Kildare, Limerick, Mayo, Roscommon, Sligo, Waterford, Tipperary and Wexford.
A first in the Republic of Ireland’s primary care market; the programme is being delivered by a consortium comprised of Prime, Balfour Beatty and InfraRed Capital Partners Limited, as the investment adviser to HICL Infrastructure Company (HICL), the listed infrastructure fund.
News of financial close follows the announcement of the consortium as preferred tenderer last May for the 25-year PPP (design, build, finance and maintain) contract. Since then the consortium has worked closely with the Health Service Executive (HSE) and the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA) to reach financial close.
Based on the concept of ‘One project, 14 communities’, each centre has been designed to meet local needs and make a positive difference to the community within which it is located, while the design process has also sought to focus on elements such as energy conservation, materials selection, operational needs, and maintenance requirements, all aimed at delivering value for money for the HSE and NDFA.
A key element of the project will be local procurement, with locally-based subcontractors and suppliers featuring strongly in each project.
In addition to GP services at each of the new primary care centres, some sites will include additional services such as dental services, physiotherapy, speech and language services, community nursing, community mental health services, child and adolescent mental health services, early intervention teams, and doctor-on-call services.
Will Bilbrough, development director at Prime, said: “It is exciting to have reached this latest milestone and I very much look forward to seeing the successful delivery of each centre that, when complete, will provide a new direction for primary care services in 14 communities across Ireland.”
Tzvetelina Bogoina, Balfour Beatty bid director, added: "Balfour Beatty is a trusted partner in the healthcare sector having delivered over £2billion worth of hospitals and care centres over the past decade. We look forward to handing over the primary care centres which will make a positive difference to local communities in terms of health outcomes as well as added social value outcomes.”
Dungarvan Primary Care Centre
