Engineer unsure when infrastructure project will re-start

Engineer Aecom’s evacuation of expatriate staff and their families from strife-torn Libya will cost it £10m, the consulting giant has said.

The firm said the evacuation - completed this week - and subsequent loss of revenues, will hit company profits for the second quarter by eight cents a share. However, it said profit for the year should be unchanged at $2.25 (£1.38) to $2.35 a share due to continued strength in the remainder of the company’s business.

Aecom has been programme manager for the Libya Housing and Infrastructure Board’s plan to modernise Libya’s infrastructure.

The firm said in a statement: “Due to the uncertainty in Libya, the company cannot determine when the project will be restarted.”

A source inside Aecom said they believed there were hundreds of employees working in Libya before the unrest, although the company was unable to confirm this.

The uprising against Colonel Gaddafi has all but shut down construction on the country’s £36bn investment plan to 2012, and all UK firms’ offices were reported closed.