Balfour Beatty has announced the appointment of Steve O’Sullivan as Project Manager with responsibility for Balfour Beatty VINCI SYSTRA’s HS2 Old Oak Common station project.
Steve replaces Nigel Russell, who was promoted to Chief Executive Officer of Balfour Beatty’s HS2 Major Projects business in January 2024.
He has over 40 years of experience in the industry, having joined Balfour Beatty as an Electrical Engineering apprentice in 1980.
He has since been involved in some of the largest and most complex infrastructure projects in the UK and overseas, such as Terminal 2B and Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport and Nam Cheong Station West Rail interchange in Hong Kong.
“There is no infrastructure scheme more recognisable than HS2. It’s a household name and is critical for thousands of people and communities in the UK.”
Steve was also the Senior Project Director for Balfour Beatty’s joint venture with Morgan Sindall and VINCI Construction on the Whitechapel Elizabeth Line station project, and was Balfour Beatty’s Senior Representative on the Sizewell C Nuclear Power Station project.
Steve said: “I have worked in the construction and infrastructure industry – and at Balfour Beatty in particular - for many years, helping to deliver iconic schemes around the world.
“But there is no infrastructure scheme more recognisable than HS2. It’s a household name and is critical for thousands of people and communities in the UK. It is therefore an honour to be leading the 2,000 employees who are already working tirelessly at Old Oak Common to ensure its success and be part of the regeneration of the area in which I grew up.”
The Balfour Beatty VINCI SYSTRA joint venture was awarded the HS2 construction management contract for the Old Oak Common station project in 2019. The project includes the design, construction and commissioning of the station and delivering six underground platforms and up to eight platforms on the adjacent Great Western Main Line.
Nigel Russell, Chief Executive Officer of Balfour Beatty’s HS2 Major Projects business said: “I am pleased to hand over the reins of the HS2 Old Oak Common project to Steve.
“Steve’s detailed knowledge and understanding of the market, combined with his wealth of experience, makes him perfectly placed to perform this role and lead the delivery of the UK’s best-connected and largest new railway station.”
Last year, Balfour Beatty VINCI SYSTRA celebrated the completion of two years of permanent construction, with progress so far including the installation of the 1.2 mile diaphragm wall for the underground box which will contain the six new high-speed platforms and the first base slab concrete pour in the western end of the station box.
Image credit: Balfour Beatty, HS2
