150 Appendices

Appendix B
Conditions of Contract for EPC/Turnkey Projects
(EPCT) ‘The Silver Book’
These Conditions of Contract are intended for use where one entity (the
Contractor) provides a fully equipped facility ready for operation at the ‘turn
of the key’. The Employer is required to provide a fully descriptive document
specifying precisely what is to be built and to what standards. In defining the
Employer’s Requirements, he may provide preliminary drawings, site data
and technical requirements including specifications. The Employer’s
Requirements may also contain requirements for specified outputs from the
completed facility.
This form of Conditions of Contract has not found favour in the
construction industry, as the risk, both for time and money, which is allocated
to the Contractor by the Silver Book is far greater than that allocated by the
Yellow Book. The cost of preparing a tender offer is significantly higher than
is the case using either the Red Book or the Yellow Book. Generally, there is
a lack of reporting on any contracts that might be using the Silver Book
forms.
The increasing use of Design, Build and Operate (DBO) projects (refer to
discussion in Appendix E following) and the issue by FIDIC in 2008 of the
Conditions of Contract for Design, Build and Operate projects (the ‘Gold
Book’) have effectively eliminated one key type of project where the Silver
Book might have been considered for use as a source document.
Appendix B

An Employer’s and Engineer’s Guide to the FIDIC Conditions of Contract,

First Edition. Michael D. Robinson.
© 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Published 2013 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.