Originally Posted by
Shed-on-a-Pole
Manchester paid the full cost of theirs. Nothing was gifted to them.
That's because Manchester paid £172m for it, which was a straightforward and reasonable construction cost (including acquisition of land). In contrast the stratospheric costs quoted for Heathrow are a mystery to the construction world for what they are going to do.
One explanation is that Heathrow, unlike Manchester, is an airport with charges controlled by the Regulator, and that adding to the approved asset base is one way to get an increase in authorised charges. By gaming the system you can get the new high cost estimates added to your asset base and this can lead to an increase in authorised charges.
Heathrow is part-owned by Ferrovial, who also own UK mainstream contractor Amey, and the "costs" of the project will be whatever Amey manage to publish.