The renovation of the Binnenhof in The Hague will again be considerably more expensive. Outgoing Minister Hugo de Jonge (Housing and Public Housing, CDA) presented the House of Representatives late on Tuesday know to be able to come up with a precise amount at the end of April, but is now already reporting the higher costs. Increased material costs and a poorer condition of the roof and wall structures than previously thought, among other things, are causing the amount to rise.
Also read
The Binnenhof is rotting, leaking and molding
When the House of Representatives approved the large-scale renovation of the Binnenhof complex in 2015, the costs were still estimated at half a billion euros. In 2021, when the renovation started, an additional 243 million euros were added. The last figure dates from April last year, when the costs were estimated at 843.6 million.
While part of the higher costs arise from increased salaries for construction staff and more expensive material costs, which the entire construction sector has to deal with, the renovation is also not going well. Now that the users of the Binnenhof have left their buildings, investigations into the structural condition of the complex have been carried out in recent years, which were previously not possible. This showed that the technical condition of architectural structures is “much worse” than what the complex was assumed to be at the start of the renovation, according to De Jonge.
Roof construction
As examples, De Jonge mentions the roof construction of the Plenary Hall of the Senate, which is “unstable”. More asbestos was also found in all buildings than previously anticipated. The strictly necessary construction work will therefore have a significantly greater impact on the budget. Contractors also expect to incur more costs for both construction logistics and the installation of modern technology in the buildings, because strict conditions are imposed given the monumental status of the Binnenhof.
In addition, since the decision to renovate, the safety and sustainability requirements of (government) buildings have been tightened, for which additional money must be made available. A precise completion date for the renovation has not yet been determined due to the many uncertainties. The renovation is not expected to be completed before 2030.