FIDIC / Legal Reference: FIDIC Red Book Clause 8.6
The process of speeding up construction activities to recover programme slippage or achieve an earlier completion date. Acceleration may be instructed by the Engineer (instructed acceleration) or may arise where the contractor accelerates in response to an employer’s wrongful refusal to grant a legitimate EOT (constructive acceleration).
What it means in practice
Instructed acceleration under Clause 8.6 requires the Engineer to give a formal instruction to expedite progress. The contractor is entitled to additional cost for instructed acceleration — including overtime, additional plant deployment, increased preliminary costs, and any productivity loss arising from increased activity density on site.
Constructive acceleration arises where the contractor is entitled to an EOT but the EOT is wrongly refused. Faced with the prospect of Delay Damages, the contractor accelerates. On completion, it claims the acceleration costs as damages flowing from the employer’s failure to grant the EOT.
Where disputes arise
Constructive acceleration claims are difficult to establish because the contractor must prove: that it was entitled to an EOT; that the EOT was wrongly refused; that it incurred additional costs to accelerate; and that those costs would not have been incurred but for the wrongful refusal.
UAE Context
Acceleration claims are increasingly common in UAE construction as project timelines tighten and employers apply pressure through Delay Damages exposure. e-Basel has experience of both instructed and constructive acceleration claims across UAE infrastructure and building projects.
Related terms
Acceleration claims — whether instructed or constructive — require specialist claims expertise and cost analysis. e-Basel provides comprehensive support for acceleration claims in UAE construction disputes.
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