UK construction giant Carillion expects strong growth in the Middle East next year, and sees revenues doubling over the medium-term.
The company, which operates in the region as a joint venture called Al Futtaim Carillion, said it was continuing to make “good progress” in the Middle East.
“In 2011, we expect full-year revenue to grow strongly and we continue to target an increase in operating profit, despite the operating margin easing back…due to contracts being competitively tendered rather than negotiated,” the company said in a statement.
“Our focus on large, high-quality projects for a small number of financially robust customers means that the timing of project starts and completions can have a significant effect on period-on-period growth rates,” it added.
“With a record pipeline of contract opportunities, we continue to target strong growth over the medium term.”
The statement said Carillion was well positioned to achieve the medium-term objectives for growth first announced in 2010, with Middle East revenues doubling to around £1bn over three to five years.
Carillion is one of the UK’s biggest support services and construction companies, employing around 50,000 people.
It has annual revenue of around £5bn and operations across Britain and in Europe, Canada, the Middle East, North Africa and Caribbean.
Al Futtaim Carillion is a Dubai-based and registered organisation jointly owned by Al Futtaim (Private) Limited of Dubai (51 percent) and Carillion Construction Overseas Limited (49 percent).
In March, the UK’s Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) said it remained upbeat on construction prospects in the Middle East despite the impact the global slowdown had on the industry.
It said that despite the slump in some areas of the region, most notably Dubai, it was seeing an influx of construction professionals into the Middle East.
Before the global recession, the Middle East was touted as the number one hotspot for construction activity.
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