Balfour Beatty, the international infrastructure group, announces today that Gammon Construction, the market-leading contractor in Hong Kong in which Balfour Beatty has a 50% shareholding, has been awarded a HK $8.9 billion (£724 million) rail infrastructure contract, in joint venture with Leighton Asia, by MTR Corporation.

The contract, in which Gammon has a 50% share, is for the construction of a major terminus station in the West Kowloon district and part of the Hong Kong section of the Guangzhou – Shenzhen – Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL) which forms part of China's strategic national express rail network. It is the second XRL contract secured by the joint venture, following the award of the West Kowloon Terminus Approach Tunnel South in 2010.


Balfour Beatty Chief Executive, Ian Tyler, said: "This is a very significant contract win and evidence of our strength of capability and reputation for quality in the region. We are pleased that MTR Corporation has chosen to continue the long association with Gammon, significantly extending our scope of work on this project which, when complete, will provide a world class rail terminus and serve as an international gateway to China."

Construction works are scheduled to begin in October 2011 with an expected completion date in 2015.

(CD)