Number more than one quarter up on same period last time

Kier’s order book topped the £10bn mark at the end of last year, the company said in a trading update today.

In the update for the six months to the end of December, the firm said its order book was £10.1bn – a 3% rise on the year-end figure of £9.8bn at the end of June – and a 26% rise on the £8bn it posted at the end of 2021.

The firm, which was recently fined £4.4m by the Health and Safety Executive for safety breaches in 2018 and 2019 while working on the M6 motorway, added that over 90% of its business has been secured for its current financial year.

Kier-Highways-SkywaysMedia

Kier will release its half-year results in March

It said that average month-end net debt is expected to be £50m higher than the prior period when it was £191m. But it added: “The Group continues to generate positive operating cashflow in FY23 and expects to have a net cash position at the year-end.”

Kier recently replaced Liam Cummins as group managing director of construction with its former group commercial director Stuart Togwell who joined Kier from Wates in summer 2019. It is understood Togwell is not being directly replaced in commercial.

Cummins has joined Permasteelisa, which is celebrating its fiftieth anniversary this year, as its new group chief executive, becoming the first UK boss of the Italian cladding giant.

Kier will unveil its interim results on 9 March.