Image: Artist's rendition of the new Sydney Fish Markets. Photo: Sydney Fish Markets.
The construction of the new Sydney Fish Market has been overshadowed by allegations of bullying and financial exploitation involving construction giant Multiplex and one of its key subcontractors, Sharvain Facades.
Earlier in March, Multiplex appealed for government assistance after Sharvain Facades, the subcontractor that designed and manufactured the scaled roof, went into voluntary administration.
Sharvain Facades has helped design some of Sydney’s most distinguishable structures, including the Chau Chak Wing Building at UTS, the Commonwealth Bank Building at Darling Square, and the ICC & Theatre at Darling Harbour Live.
Sydney Fish Market Redevelopment Ballooning Over Budget
The redevelopment of the Sydney Fish Market, initially slated to cost $750 million, has blown over budget and is now budgeted at around $836 million.
Sharvain Facades’ managing director Boris Kostura spoke with the Sydney Morning Herald in March, explaining that the “perimeters, program and prices have changed far beyond what could have been anticipated”.
The latest update on the Sydney Fish Market project reveals that Multiplex allegedly bullied Sharvain Facades into signing a loan agreement under duress to ensure the company completed the build before falling into financial collapse.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, documents tendered in the Federal Court revealed Sharvain Facades had initially agreed to design and construct the roof in May 2021 for $41 million, with an expected completion date in 2023.
However, due to multiple delays on the project, construction did not begin until April 2024. By October that year, Sharvain had spent $58 million on the project, and projected the total cost to be $73 million. Despite these challenges, Sharvain was asked to change features of the roof design due to revisions from Multiplex and other stakeholders.
Multiplex and Sharvain Facades Signing ‘Deed of Agreement’
Rather than renegotiating the contract to reflect the increasing costs, Multiplex and Sharvain signed a new “deed of agreement”. This contract extended the project completion date to June 2025, and added $4.3 million for cost variations. The agreement also included a controversial $16 million “loan” from Multiplex to Sharvain, with two $5 million portions of the loan forgiven if Sharvain met building milestones.
An independent party who was familiar with the deed told The Herald the agreement used “bully boy tactics” to “reclassify a genuine income payment as a loan”.
“It should have been reported by [Sharvain’s managing director] Boris Kostura to the authorities, but he was desperate to get paid,” the person said.
$16 Million Classified as ‘Loan’ Instead of Direct Cost, Raising Concerns Over Financial Underreporting
Multiplex’s decision to classify the $16 million as a “loan” rather than a direct cost related to the Sydney Fish Market project allows the company to record it under its general financial accounts, rather than allocating it specifically to the project’s budget.
This approach hides the costs within the company’s broader financial records, obscuring the true financial strain the Sydney Fish Market project has placed on Multiplex.
Meanwhile, Sharvain Facades’ financial struggles were compounded by continuous delays and scope changes, pushing its costs well beyond initial estimates.
The project is not expected to be completed around November 2025, but concerns of the company’s solvency have grown.
These concerns have been fuelled by the failure to submit its 2024 accounts on time, as well as ongoing rising costs, delays and complications related to the design of the new facility.
