Ballast regions snapped up by Rok

Rok Property Solutions has bought three of the northern regions of Ballast plc which went into administration a fortnight ago. They cover Wales, the north of England and Scotland and will boost Rok's annual turnover by around £48m.

Garvis Snook, chief executive of Rok, said this afternoon (Thursday): "We are delighted to have secured this acquisition. It represents a major stride for Rok in achieving its goal of offering its solutions across the length and breadth of the UK.

"We have demonstrated our ability to transform under-performing businesses by empowering local teams such as Llewellyn."

Rok is paying £2m in cash for certain assets and construction contracts, the figure being dependent on the novation of the construction contracts. Rok is not inheriting historical liabilities other than those associated with the specific contracts - they generated a gross profit of £500,000 in the 12 months to 31 December 2002.

The move would fire up tensions at Galliford Try's annual meeting tomorrow (Friday) in the Grove Hotel at Watford. If Galliford's share price falls over the next 24 hours as shareholders contemplate the possibility of Rok now walking away from its Galliford bid, chief executive David Calverley would face the possibility of heated questioning.