Hochtief Unit Gets Contracts in Australia

FRANKFURT--Germany's Hochtief AG (Hot.XE) said Tuesday its subsidiary Leighton Holdings Ltd. received two contracts worth EUR1.85 billion ($2.4 billion) to build and operate rail services and a prison.

As part of the first contract, two of Leighton's subsidiaries will design, finance and build the North West Rail Link. Leighton's units Thiess and John Holland in a joint venture with Dragados, were already working on another contract worth $1.15 billion for the link, since last year, to construct the tunnels and excavate new underground stations for Sydney.

"The Federal Government's objective is to catalyze $125 billion in new infrastructure spending by the end of the decade, and a large part of this is expected to be delivered through public private partnership's, which presents a significant opportunity for Leighton," Leighton Holdings Chief Executive Marcelino Fernandez Verdes said.

The second contract is in Melbourne, where Leighton's unit John Holland, as part of a joint venture, will build and operate a prison for about 1,000 inmates. Leighton's share in the contract is around EUR450 million.

The combined value of the contracts for Leighton and its partners in Australia is EUR3 billion.

Write to Neetha.Mahadevan at [e-mail]

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