The University of California, Irvine, has been forced to delay expansion of Rowland Hall, one of its key science buildings, because the low bid for the project came in at $24 million, $6 million higher than expected.

The cost of the 85,000- square-foot upgrade and expansion soared largely because steel prices have greatly increased, said Ronald Stern, dean of the School of Physical Sciences.

The project will be re-bid when steel prices fall, Stern said.

The campus may have to do the same with a proposed $365 million hospital project in Orange that recently came in about $50 million over bid.