Acquisition

Balfour Beatty PLC
06 May 2008

6 May 2008

            BALFOUR BEATTY ACQUIRES BLACKPOOL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
                                FOR £14 MILLION

Balfour Beatty, the international engineering, construction, services and
investment group, announces today that Regional and City Airports (RCA), its
specialist airport investment and development group, has agreed to acquire 95%
of Blackpool International Airport for £14 million in cash. The airport is being
sold by Mar Properties, a large Northern Ireland-based property developer, and
the transaction is subject to receiving the approval of the remaining minority
shareholder, Blackpool Borough Council. The Council is supportive of the
transaction, and this approval is expected to be received by 9 May 2008.

Blackpool International Airport is situated one mile south of Blackpool town
centre and has excellent road and rail links which provide fast access to the
North West. Its current key customers include Jet2.com, Ryanair and Manx2.com
and it provides an established base to a range of other air carriers and related
aeronautical businesses. The airport is forecast to handle about half a million
passengers in 2008, flying 12 routes to the UK, Ireland, Isle of Man and
mainland European destinations.

Commenting today, Balfour Beatty Chief Executive, Ian Tyler, said:

'Blackpool International is a well-located airport with the potential to become
a thriving international gateway to Lancashire and Cumbria. We will work
together with the airlines and our local partners to help increase its
penetration within this core catchment area and to play its part in attracting
inbound visitors to the region. We believe that our approach will deliver
significant, sustained growth in passenger traffic at the airport and will
generate important economic benefits for it and for Blackpool. Our aim is to
develop Blackpool to be the airport of choice for residents, businesses and
visitors of Lancashire and Cumbria.'

Cllr Peter Callow, Leader, Blackpool Council, which owns a 5% stake in the
airport, said:

'This is absolutely great news for Blackpool. The Airport has developed rapidly
in recent years and I am confident that Balfour Beatty will be able to take it
to an even higher level. I know that they have very exciting plans for the
future which will see expansion of both flights and facilities. Clearly they
have the contacts and capacity to deliver these aspirations which should mean
growth for the whole area and more jobs for local people.'

RCA acquired Exeter International Airport for £60 million in January 2007. Data
from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) shows that Exeter is one of the fastest
growing airports in the UK and the strongest growing airport in the South West,
handling just over one million arriving and departing passengers in 2007.

Balfour Beatty Capital is an experienced investor in infrastructure, having
raised over £7 billion of funding for its 30 privately-financed projects in
which it has over £250 million of committed and invested equity.

Balfour Beatty also has a successful track record in airport infrastructure
development. Its professional and technical services division has played a key
role in the development programmes at Heathrow, Gatwick and the BAA Scottish
Airports. Its construction and services subsidiaries have undertaken major
airport projects at Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Hong Kong,
Dubai and Miami.

                                      ENDS

Enquiries to:

Tim Sharp
Tel: [phone]
www.balfourbeatty.com


Notes to Editors
----------------

1.  Balfour Beatty has a substantial existing investment portfolio, largely
    through the UK PPP/PFI programme. This portfolio consists of:-

    - nine major hospitals
    - seven major schools schemes in the UK and a technical education PPP in
      Singapore
    - five road and three street lighting projects
    - the London Underground power system
    - a waste water scheme
    - a coastal defence pathfinder PPP
    - Barking Power Station (non-PPP)
    - Exeter International Airport (non-PPP).

2.  Balfour Beatty Capital develops, owns and operates privately-financed
    infrastructure projects. It is one of the largest UK private sector
    infrastructure investors and has a broad range of skills from project
    promotion and development through to financing, project execution and
    long-term asset management and operations.

3.  Balfour Beatty is a world-class engineering, construction, services and
    investment business, well-positioned in infrastructure markets which offer
    significant long-term growth. We work in partnership with sophisticated
    customers who value the highest levels of quality, safety and technical
    expertise. Our skills are applied in appropriate combinations to meet
    individual customer need. Balfour Beatty's financial position, with a strong
    balance sheet and operating cash flows, offers continuing flexibility to add
    additional capacity and expertise to the business mix and to make
    appropriate investments in PPP and other long-term growth opportunities.




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