Heijmans has bought the Dutch arm of collapsed German contractor Philipp Holzmann.
Heijmans said it had reached an agreement to buy the firm, Dubbers Malden, from Holzmann. Dubbers Malden was profitable last year and had a turnover of more than £19m.

Heijmans, which is based in the Netherlands, also bought two smaller German subsidiaries of Holzmann, and said it was also interested in buying others, as long as they were profitable.

Meanwhile, German contractor Bilfinger Berger has announced that it is interested in buying JA Jones, Holzmann's US subsidiary, and its German construction services unit, HSG Holzmann Technischer.

JA Jones is based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is profitable. Bilfinger Berger said both units would fit its strategy "perfectly". British contractors Bovis Lend Lease and Balfour Beatty were tipped in March to make bids for JA Jones, which has a turnover of about £2bn.

Holzmann was placed in liquidation in earlier this year after it collapsed owing £130m.