Leighton nears AUD 5 billion new projects book order Thursday, Feb 19, 2009 Australia’s largest engineering and construction company Leighton Holdings Ltd is near to securing new projects worth as much as AUD 5 billion as it bids to maintain or expand its order book during the global recession.
Mr Wal King CEO of Leighton Holdings in an interview on Australian Broadcasting Corp’s Inside Business program said that “We see big momentum in our business. Talks on the new contracts are very advanced.”
Leighton, whose order book stood at AUD 37.5 billion at the end of December, aims to find projects in the construction and mining sectors even as the recession saps demand for iron ore and other raw materials. Last week, the Sydney-based company won AUD 2.6 billion of coal-mining deals in Indonesia and Mongolia.
Mr King said that “One mine closure in central Queensland or cutbacks doesn’t signal the end of the mining industry. The mining industry in Australia is still very much alive and well, but there is some adjustment going on in terms of high- cost producers and that’s inevitable.”
Mr King added that “Leighton has also so far won enough contracts in the Middle East to offset cancellations suffered by its operations in the region.”
He said that “Some of the adjustment in Dubai will involve pain, some pain for us, but right here today the cancellations that we’ve had are less than the new work that we’ve had ordered.
Source: SteelGuru
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