Re Contract

RNS Number : 1067B

Balfour Beatty PLC

12 August 2008

 



12 August 2008

GAMMON CAPITAL REACHES FINANCIAL CLOSE FOR THE £100 MILLION INSTITUTE OF TECHNICAL EDUCATION PPP PROJECT IN SINGAPORE

Balfour Beatty, the international engineering, construction, services and investment group, announces today that Gammon Capital, its PPP vehicle in South East Asia, has reached financial close for the new Institute of Technical Education (ITE) College West, the first accommodation based PPP in Singapore. The project, Gammon's first in PPP, which has a contract period of 27 years and a capital value of approximately £100 million, is scheduled to be completed in 2010.  Its first intake of students will be in July of that year.

Construction will be undertaken by Gammon Construction, in which, like Gammon Capital, Balfour Beatty has a 50% interest.  Gammon Capital will also be responsible for long-term facilities management services to include mechanical and electrical maintenance, AV support, cleaning, landscape management, security, parking, environment and waste management and catering.  Its FM partner will be United Premas, a subsidiary of United Group Services.

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

'We are delighted to have reached financial close on ITE and play a key role in developing technical education in Singapore.  Our acquisition of Balfour Beatty Communities has established a strong PPP position for us in the US.  This is a further important step in our strategy of creating sustainable PPP businesses in selected geographic markets.'

The new college is the second stage in ITE's plan to consolidate the existing 10 ITE Campuses into three Mega Campuses and follows the opening of ITE College East in January 2005.  Under the 'One ITE System, Three Colleges' education model, the new ITE College West is envisioned to be 'An ITE College of Excellence for Service Quality' operating three key schools for Business and Services, Info-Communications Technology and Engineering.

ITE College West will be a comprehensive college with niche courses in hospitality, retail and automotive engineering.  It seeks to provide an inspiring learning and interactive environment that promotes the holistic development of students with relevant skills, knowledge and values for the global economy.  The College will also have special emphasis on the development of service excellence skills, knowledge and mindset.

The project involves the design, construction and operation of a distinctive campus with a student capacity of 7,200 full time, 8,100 part time and approximately 630 staff.  It will comprise training rooms, workshops, laboratories and lecture theatres. The complex will also include a training restaurant and kitchen, training hotel, a student interaction and learning centre, integrated sports facilities and centres of technology.

-ENDS-

Enquiries to:    

Tim Sharp

Tel: [phone]

www.balfourbeatty.com

Notes to Editors

1.	Gammon Capital was formed in 2005 to pursue PPP projects in the Asia region, with an initial focus on Singapore, where Gammon Capital is based.
2.	Gammon Construction is Hong Kong's largest and most successful contractor.  It has a substantial existing presence and long-term experience of working in Singapore.  It has an annual revenue of approximately £500 million and employs over 2,000 full-time staff.  Like Gammon Capital, it is co-owned with Jardine Matheson.
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 needs.

 

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