News Releases
Balfour Beatty Reaches Financial Close On £100 Million Sunderland Street Lighting Contract
13 Aug 2003Balfour Beatty, the international engineering, construction and services group, announces today that Balfour Beatty Capital Projects has reached financial close on the street lighting and highway signs, PFI maintenance contract, for The City of Sunderland Council. The contract is valued at £100 million.
The concession period will be for 25 years from financial close with the replacement of 70% of Sunderland’s streetlights and the installation of new streetlights in the first five years of the contract.
Balfour Beatty Chief Executive, Mike Welton, commenting today, said: “We are delighted to have reached financial close for this project and look forward to working with The City of Sunderland Council in providing these essential construction and maintenance services.”
Councillor Ian Galbraith, Cabinet Member for Environment, said: “The installation of 35,000 new lighting columns will have a major impact on reducing night crime and the fear of crime and improving road safety. We believe it will also have spin offs in terms of generally encouraging people to walk, cycle and use public transport more.”
Balfour Beatty’s power line and cabling subsidiary, Balfour Beatty Power Networks, will carry out the work which includes the maintenance of 45,000 lighting columns and 13,500 highway signs and other fixed equipment. The core investment programme will be implemented in the first five years, during which time some 35,000 streetlights will be replaced.
Balfour Beatty is already a major player in term maintenance through its work on roads for the Highways Agency and local authorities, on rail for Network Rail and on long-term PFI and private sector projects.
ENDS
Enquiries to:
Tim Sharp
Tel: +44 (0)20 7216 6800
