Interserve cuts out all piling activities

Interserve Plc has announced today (Thursday) that, following the completion of a review of operations, it is proposing to discontinue its activities in foundation engineering by closing its subsidiary Westpile.

The self-contained business unit within Interserve's Project Services Division has an annual turnover of approximately £20m.

Although Westpile is currently trading profitably, the highly cyclical and capital-intensive nature of piling operations does not offer Interserve prospects for sustained profit and cash flow generation in the medium to long-term.

The impact of the proposed closure will be an Exceptional Charge of approximately £5.8m, which will be reflected in the 2003 full year results.