Kier

Cambridgeshire County Council is looking to replace Kier on a level crossing bypass project after costs increased by almost £11m, it has been announced. The local authority said it is looking to re-procure the Peterborough to Whittlesey connection after failing to agree to the final costs. Kier's final estimate for construction…

The number of speculators betting against Kier has hit a new high for the year as the company’s share price reached its lowest ever level yesterday. The proportion of Kier’s stock being held by short sellers topped 10 per cent earlier this week. Short sellers make money when a company’s…

Highways England has brought 120 Kier employees in-house as part of contractual changes that will see the roads agency take a “more controlling role in asset management”. The government-funded company has entered the first phase of the strategic shift to take direct control of management, maintenance and other services. Three-year…

For those of us who regularly look for signals around the health of the construction market, the last few weeks have felt like an almost unrelenting barrage of negative signs. We’ve seen three reasonably sized firms collapse, including the CN100-listed Shaylor Group. Elsewhere, we heard today that the UK’s oldest…

Kier northern director Nick Shepherd (pictured above, left) has left the firm for Yorkshire-based civil engineering and building company Britcon. Mr Shepherd spent four years at Kier leading projects and helped deliver the company’s 2020 growth plan. Britcon is a £50m-turnover privately owned business with 95 employees, and clients including Drax…

The government is “in close communication” with Kier's management over the firm’s restructure, it has been revealed. Last week, the contractor announced that it had decided to exit the housing, property investment and facilities management sectors under new CEO Andrew Davies’s restructuring plan. The company said this will result in…

Kier has been appointed to two lots on the £750m Suffolk Construction Framework. The framework covers Suffolk County Council’s construction projects over the next four years and will be managed by Concertus Design and Property Consultants. Works will include traditional construction, refurbishment and demolition works at public sector buildings. The…

Short selling of Kier shares has topped 9 per cent, having increased following the announcement of the company's restructuring plan last week. According to data from the Financial Conduct Authority, 9.1 per cent of Kier shares are being shorted, meaning speculators expect the price to fall. Since 31 May, short…

Kier Group chief operating officer Claudio Veritiero has said the firm’s job cuts are “regrettable but necessary”. In an interview with Construction News, the COO said that the 1,200 job losses at the contractor, revealed yesterday, would primarily be from the firm’s corporate centre. “Across a group of this scale and this…

Kier has today unveiled a fresh attempt to try and reduce debt, shore up its balance sheet and ensure it doesn't suffer the same fate that this week befell yet another top 100 contractor in Shaylor Group. Its share price hit record lows on Friday on news it would sell…