Petards secures contract extension with Network Rail worth £1.3m

AIM-listed software company Petards has been awarded a multi-year contract renewal for the provision of software licences, maintenance and support services to Network Rail.

The contract, which has been secured by recently-acquired subsidiary RTS, is a renewal of a similar four-year contract that expired last week.

The new five year contract is effective from 23 June 2018 and runs until June 2023, the final two years of which are at Network Rail's option. It's worth around £1.3m, with annual revenues in excess of £250,000.

Under the terms of the contract, RTS will continue to provide software licences, maintenance and third line support to Network Rail in respect of its real time failure and incident management system that supports the UK's national rail infrastructure.

Chairman Raschid Abdullah said: "We are delighted that Network Rail has recognised the expertise and high levels of customer service provided by RTS over many years through the award of this contract. It builds upon the long established relationship RTS has with Network Rail for the provision of software and related services that form a key part of its day-to-day safety operations of the UK rail network.

"In securing this contract only a few weeks after becoming the newest member of the Petards group, RTS has made a strong start to its life under Petards' ownership and the board are confident that it will prove to be an excellent addition to the group."

At 1055 BST, the shares were up 6.5% to 23p.