Connect CNDR subsidiary is named preferred bidder on 30-year contract

Construction and engineering firm Balfour Beatty has won a £150m contract to build and maintain roads in Cumbria.

The company said its subsidiary Connect CNDR had been named preferred bidder for the PPP concession by Cumbria County Council.

The 30-year contract will involve the design and construction of a 8.25km two-way single carriageway road south west of Carlisle plus the management of a further 150km of existing roads in the county.

Birse Civils, also a Balfour Beatty subsidiary, will be responsible for building the new road, while whole life operation services will be provided by Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Services.

The company said it would invest around £5m of equity in the project.

Balfour Beatty chief executive Ian Tyler said: “We are extremely pleased to be appointed preferred bidder for this important piece of infrastructure which will take traffic away from Carlisle town centre and greatly improve traffic flows around the town and its environs.”