05.12.18
Spanish infrastructure group looking to sell Amey
Spanish construction giant Ferrovial is looking to sell its UK subsidiary Amey.
Ferrovial is putting its global support services division, which includes the Oxford-based Amey, up on the market. Investment bank Goldman Sachs has been appointed to explore the sale of “part or all” of the division.
The UK roads and infrastructure contractor’s parent company part-owns Heathrow Airport and has been heavily involved with work on the East Coast and Midland Main Lines, rail electrification around Manchester, and Crossrail.
Amey holds several other long-term major government contracts such as a £2.7bn deal with Birmingham council, a £2.2bn deal with Sheffield council for highway maintenance, and a number of rail contracts with projects such as HS2.
Amey, Network Rail’s third biggest supplier in 2016-17, has been hit with several losses in recent years such as write-offs to deals to maintain 2,500km of roads and bridges in Birmingham, and a £48m loss on a M8 motorway upgrade in Scotland.
The UK contractor reported losses of £44m in 2016, and last year Ferrovial was forced to step in to support Amey’s balance sheet with a £200m parent company loan.
A statement from the firm said: “The company has entrusted an external consultant to explore the potential divestment of all or part of the assets of the services division of which Ferrovial owns directly or indirectly.”
Most recently in August this year, Amey won a HS2 contract to design, build and install two new temporary substations to support the delivery of the Chiltern Tunnel south portal.
Ferrovial was chosen in 2016 to deliver £300m worth of enabling works as part of a joint venture with Morgan Sindall and BAM Nuttall.
Goldman Sachs will now try to gauge interest in the sale of the division.