Allenby Connaught PFI gets mobilised

Aspire Defence, the Mowlem and Kellogg Brown and Root jv that is undertaking the £5bn Allenby Connaught PFI project for the Ministry of Defence, has received a Pre-Contract Activity Letter (PCAL).

The PCAL underwrites mobilisation activities prior to commencement of the full contract and gives Aspire the go-ahead to recruit senior posts, procure and install IT infrastructure and begin the detailed design for the first tranche of construction work.

The early designs include new barracks for the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment, which is due to return to the UK from Germany in summer 2005.

The PCAL also enables Aspire to proceed with building a prototype 36-man accommodation block at Perham Down in Wiltshire to evaluate the optimum design and construction techniques for the 145 similar blocks to be constructed as part of the project over the next eight years.

The Allenby Connaught project involves major reconstruction work to the Army's Aldershot and Salisbury Plain garrisons and the provision of a range of support services for a 35-year period.