Balfour Beatty in £250m deal to manage London’s flood defences along Thames Estuary
Infrastructure firm Balfour Beatty has been signed up to help strengthen London’s flood defences as part of the 10-year Thames Estuary asset management programme.
The company said yesterday the contract would be worth up to £250m. The programme, led by engineering consultancy CH2M Hill, is aimed at managing tidal flood defences along the 170km of the Thames Estuary across Kent, Essex and London.
It will involve creating tidal walls and embankments, refurbishing existing flood barriers, building pumping stations, and delivering capital renewals and replacements.
Leo Quinn, Balfour’s chief executive, said: “Balfour Beatty is bringing significant expertise in flood defence to protect one of the world’s greatest cities from the sea.
“And, with our partners we will offer long-term, skilled, opportunities to the next generation of civil engineers.”
Quinn took the top at Balfour in January this year, after a tumultuous year for the group, which saw it issue five profit warnings. The firm made a further £70m profit warning in January this year. Takeover talks with rival firm Carillion also fell apart in August 2014.
When his appointment was announced, Quinn said he would put an end to “surprises at” the company. Since the beginning of his tenure, the firm has announced several new contracts.
Shares in Balfour fell by 1.73 per cent yesterday to 239.20p.