The SSL consortium beat off competition from the Chesterton and Shepherd Construction-led Waterside Consortium to win preferred bidder status to build the £54m hospital near Port Talbot for Glan-y-Môr NHS Trust.
SSL's consortium includes contractor Tilbury Douglas, Kier Project Investment and Charterhouse Bank.
SSL spokesman Ian Simpson said the deal had taken 22 months of work to reach preferred bidder stage: "We should have reached best and final offer stage by December 1997 but the Treasury task force stepped in and extended the pre-preferred bidder stage. It wanted to extend the commercial competition as a pilot for other schemes. We've had a gruelling series of experiences with PFI. It's cost a bob or two but it should be worth it." Tilbury Douglas will start work on the 260-bed hospital by the end of the year, and SSL is already interviewing potential project managers.
