CSG.L Regulatory News (CSG)

27 Oct 2008 07:00



27 October 2008

Cyril Sweett Group plc ('Cyril Sweett' or the 'Group')

Financial Close on Inverclyde Council Schools PPP project

Cyril Sweett, the international construction and property consultancy, is pleased to announce that the e4i consortium, of which Cyril Sweett Investments Limited ("Cyril Sweett") is one of four members, has today reached Financial Close on the £80m Inverclyde Council Schools PPP project. 

Under the project, two secondary schools and two primary schools will be built in Inverclyde, providing first class educational establishments designed for 21st Century learning. The e4i consortium comprising Cyril Sweett, Miller Construction, Land Securities Trillium, and FES, will design, construct, finance and operate the four new schools. Construction work on the primary schools will begin immediately, with completion expected in early 2010. Construction of the secondary schools will begin in summer 2009, with completion expected in spring 2011.

Cyril Sweett cites education as a key growth area for the Group, and has significantly strengthened its involvement in the education sector through the Group's acquisition of Nisbet LLP in April 2008. This acquisition brought new public sector clients to the Group, particularly in education, and together with Cyril Sweett's existing offering, the combination has been extremely successful. 

Cyril Sweett has been extremely active in providing a broad range of services to the education sector including some of the largest Building Schools for the Future (BSF) projects in Birmingham, Greenwich, Hackney, Kent and Leeds.

The Group's strategy is to acquire minority stakes in investment vehicles that specialise in niche projects, to complement the Group's existing expertise and enabling them to understand and manage the risks.  The Group plans to fund future PPP/PFI investments through a blend of retained earnings, realised funds from historic investments and bank debt.

Dean Webster, Chief Executive Officer of Cyril Sweett, said, "We are delighted to announce the Financial Close of Inverclyde Council Schools PPP project and we look forward to working with Inverclyde Council and our e4i consortium partners, who have a wealth of experience in the education sector.

The public sector, and in particular education, has become an important growth area for the Group, largely due to the growing non-discretionary Government spend in this sector. The large number of education projects which we are currently working on demonstrates our flexibility to respond to the changing business environment, an important defensive quality of the Group in these tough market conditions."

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