Balfour Beatty wins lucrative rail contract

Infrastructure group Balfour Beatty has scored a multi-million pound contract to build two miles of the Crossrail route and an iconic new rail station in South East London.

The deal, which is worth in excess of £130m, follows the group's involvement in the successful completion of the design phase of the Crossrail South East Section Project.

The new station will be built in Abbey Wood, and includes the replacement of its two existing platforms. It will also involve installing two new dedicated Crossrail lines from the station to the Plumstead portal, providing access to the new Crossrail tunnels into Canary Wharf and central London, and modifications to several bridges along the route.

Balfour Beatty Chief Executive Officer Designate, Andrew McNaughton, said: "The transportation sector, of which Rail is a key element, is an area of strategic focus for us and so we are delighted to be able to once again bring our rail and civil engineering skills to this important Crossrail project.

The work will begin in September and is due to be completed in October 2017.

"During the design phase, by working with the supply chain we have already been able to make significant cost savings for the client by identifying efficiencies. Our aim now is not only to deliver the best possible facilities for Crossrail and Network Rail but ultimately and most importantly, for the commuters and travellers who will use them every day."

Further to this, the group said that as a result of its work on a number of recent partnership projects, Balfour Beatty has been awarded the British Standard Institute's certification BS11000 for collaborative working.

"The internationally recognised standard is awarded to companies who demonstrate a collaborative approach to work by building sustainable relationships with partners and improving company competitiveness and performance by doing so," it commented.

Investors appeared unimpressed with the news, and the share price fell 2.9% to 278.60p in early trade.

NR