Financial

Lendlease’s profit fell by more than a third after it failed to recoup millions of pounds on a Leeds hospital construction project, according to its annual results published today (8 April). The contractor said it had been “virtually certain of success” when it tried to claim around £3m from a…

SSE has bought back its former mechanical and electrical (M&E) contracting arm, now called Enerveo, three years after selling it. Announcing the deal this week, an SSE statement said: “Enerveo has found it challenging to operate as an independent business.” It did not reveal the value of the deal. “Following…

Groundworks specialist Bowie Construction has filed a notice of intent to appoint administrators, after apparently being hit by cashflow issues on a bad job. The Cambridgeshire company turned over £14.5m and made a pre-tax loss of £996,830 in its latest set of accounts, which covered 1 January to 30 December…

Clients withheld more than £2m from Readie Construction after it stopped being able to obtain bonds, according to a new report published yesterday. A statement of proposals from administrators at Begbies Traynor gave more information about the circumstances leading to the company’s collapse, based on information provided by director Stuart…

Readie Construction’s supply-chain partners will struggle to recoup any of the £24.8m they are owed. Administrators from Begbies Traynor have warned that hundreds of subcontractors and supply-chain partners will be out of pocket, after the logistics and warehouse specialist collapsed into administration in February. Some partners will be hit particularly…

EW Beard Ltd has posted a 9 per cent rise in turnover to hit £179.9m – its highest-ever amount – for 2023, in the face of material supply shortages and price inflation. Turnover in the 12 months to 31 December grew by 9 per cent from £165.6m to £179.9m, generating…

Mace chief executive Mark Reynolds has hit out at clients imposing unfair contract conditions on smaller contractors, in the wake of widespread construction insolvencies. Speaking to Construction News at the launch of the Construction Leadership Council’s bi-annual report, he said he hoped that stabilising inflation and the end of Covid…

Multiplex has almost trebled its profit in Europe after a “strong” year. The London-based arm of the Australian contracting giant reported pre-tax profit of £31m for the 12 months to 31 December 2023. This was up from £11.1m in the previous year, and just £2.6m in 2021. Revenue rose by…

Wates has joined the handful of UK contractors that turn over more than £2bn, after reporting a 17.6 per cent increase in revenue to £2.1bn. The Surrey-headquartered company also posted a 43 per cent increase in pre-tax profit, from £33.7m to £44.9m, for the year to 31 December 2023. Its…

Henry Boot’s construction arm saw turnover and profit fall last year as its biggest projects were delayed by materials shortages. Unaudited results for the year to 31 December 2023 show that the listed developer and contractor’s construction arm saw revenue decrease by more than a quarter to £99.5m from £128.6m.…