Balfour Beatty venture awarded massive Texas highway project

Infrastructure company Balfour Beatty has been conditionally selected in joint venture to deliver the $1.7bn (£1.3bn) Interstate 635 LBJ East project on behalf of the Texas Department of Transportation, it announced on Friday.

The FTSE 250 firm said it held a 45% share in the joint venture, with Fluor Corporation holding 55%.

It said works would include the reconstruction and widening of 11 miles of the interstate highway around the north and east of Dallas in Texas, including the I-30 interchange, as well as the construction of service roads and numerous intersection improvements along the route.

When complete, the highway would consist of 12 lanes in total, widening the general purpose lanes from eight to 10 as well as two reconstructed existing, tolled managed lanes.

The company said the completed scheme would improve safety and reduce congestion for more than 200,000 drivers who used the interstate daily.

“Following the successful delivery of the Dallas Horseshoe project, and the continued delivery of the Southern Gateway project, this latest contract award from the Texas Department of Transportation demonstrates our market leading capabilities,” said Balfour Beatty group chief executive Leo Quinn.

“With over half of Balfour Beatty's construction revenue generated from our US operations, we continue to strengthen our business, benefiting from strong competitive positions in our chosen large and growing infrastructure markets.”

Full contract award was expected in autumn, with works expected to commence in early 2020, and substantial completion scheduled for late 2024.

At construction peak, the joint venture would employ a workforce of around 500.