UK, Asian demand boosts Britain's biggest builder
Balfour Beatty Plc, Britain's biggest builder, said full-year profit surged 66 percent on buoyant markets in the United Kingdom and Asia, as well as last year's acquisition of Texas-based Centex Construction.
Net income advanced to 151 million pounds, or 34.8 pence a share, from 91 million pounds, or 21 pence, a year earlier, the London-based company said yesterday. Revenue climbed 44 percent to 6.47 billion pounds. Analysts estimated profit of 145 million pounds on sales of 6.15 billion pounds.
Balfour plans to replicate its UK business model by setting up so-called public-private partnership units in the United States, Germany and Asia as governments seek to involve companies in funding hospital, school and infrastructure spending. The builder yesterday announced construction and maintenance contracts from the US military and hotel industry valued at more than $1.2 billion.
"We have record order books and an exceptionally strong pipeline of high-quality new work," Chief Executive Officer Ian Tyler said in yesterday's statement. "Our acquisitions will add substantially to our earning power. We are confident that we will continue to make further good progress in 2008 and beyond."
Orders announced yesterday include a $640 million joint venture to build and revamp the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center at the Naval Base in Bethesda, Maryland, and a $196 million contract to construct training facilities for the US Army Corps of Engineers at Fort Lee, Virginia.
Balfour Beatty Construction US has also secured a $250 million order to expand the Peabody Hotel in Orlando, Florida.
Balfour's order book increased by a quarter and stood at 11.4 billion pounds at the end of the year. The company is the preferred bidder on an additional 2 billion pounds of work.
The builder bought Centex for $362 million in February last year to add a US builder of military housing, prisons and other state infrastructure.
Agencies
(China Daily 03/06/2008 page16)
