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Revenue at Bam鈥檚 UK civil engineering business outstripped that of its traditionally larger building arm last year as covid and other losses sent the pair鈥檚 Dutch parent nosediving to a 鈧�237m (拢206m) pre-tax loss.

Income from Bam鈥檚 building arm slumped 16% to 鈧�894m (拢777m) with the business, which recently signed the deal to build a new studios complex for Sky in Hertfordshire, racking up an adjusted pre-tax loss of 鈧�3.3m (拢2.9m) from a 鈧�35.6m (拢31m) profit in 2019 鈥� although the division bounced back from an 鈧�18.3m (拢16m) loss in the first half to turn in a 鈧�15m (拢13m) profit in the last six months of 2020.

The UK building business is expected to give more details of its performance when it files its 2020 results with Companies House later this spring but parent Royal Bam said a 鈥渢echnical set-back鈥� on an unnamed project, thought to be the University of Sheffield鈥檚 Faculty of Social Sciences building which last year saw the entire concrete frame torn down after problems were discovered with the piling, helped send the division into the red.

Royal Bam said its UK building business was facing a mixed outlook, adding: 鈥淐ompetition has increased due to covid-19 and the end of the UK/EU transition period. Public sector clients continue as before, while there is a mixed picture for the private sector.鈥�

Its civils arm, Bam Nuttall, saw revenue jump 11% to 鈧�974m (拢847m) thanks to more work on HS2, where it is working with a Kier team on the railway in the Chilterns and Warwickshire, and Highways England鈥檚 smart motorways initiative.

But profit slipped by nearly half from 鈧�23m (拢20m) to 鈧�12.3m (拢11m) although Royal Bam added: 鈥淚n the UK, the expected growth across all infrastructure sectors is strengthening.鈥�

The company singled out the UK, along with the Netherlands and Ireland, as where it would concentrate on growing its business. 鈥淭hese are the markets where Bam has by the far the largest scale,鈥� it added. It said its work in Germany and Belgium was 鈥渕ore challenging鈥� and flagged that its future strategy in those countries could include sell-offs.

Overall, the group said revenue fell 5.5% to 鈧�6.8bn (拢5.9bn) with its pre-tax profit falling from a 鈧�23.4m (拢20m) profit last time to a 鈧�237m (拢206m) loss in 2020 which included nearly 鈧�45m (拢39m) of restructuring costs.

The firm said much of the blame for the weaker figures was down to the impact of covid with group revenue down 19% in the second half of last year.

But it said losses of 鈧�110m (拢96m) at its soon to be shut Bam International arm, which it blamed on covid and two problem jobs in the Middle East, and the cost of a 鈧�36m (拢31m) settlement at its German business following a fatal accident on the Cologne metro its German Wayss & Freytag tunnelling arm helped build 12 years ago, also sent it crashing into the red.

The firm said it had begun a restructuring initiative aimed at making annual savings of 鈧�100m (拢87m).

The firm said underlying pre-tax profit, which did not include restructuring costs, impairments and pension costs, was down from 鈧�74.1m (拢64m) to 鈧�34.3m (拢30m) with the firm鈥檚 PPP business contributing 鈧�132m (拢114m) to the pre-tax result. It added that without the results from its discontinued operations, the net result was a loss of 鈧�122m (拢106m) from a profit of 鈧�11.8m (拢10m) last time.