OFT probes Renew Holdings subsidiary

Specialist construction services firm Renew Holdings has become the latest company to confirm that the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has contacted it in relation to contract tenders, as part of an ongoing inquiry into bid rigging in the construction industry.

In a regulatory announcement to the City, Renew Holdings said that the OFT had approached one of its subsidiaries in relation to "some historic contract tenders".

The company said that the tenders represented a small proportion of the tenders made during the period in question, and that it had subsequently conducted a review of all its business procedures to ensure that they were in compliance with the Competition Act.

The announcement comes just days after Kier, Interserve, Balfour Beatty, Connaught Rok and Galliford Try all made similar announcements, confirming that they had been contacted by the OFT.

The recent activity is in relation to a two-year-old investigation by the OFT into cartel activity in construction. So far 57 companies' offices have been raided, and it is understood that as many as 150 firms may be being scrutinised by the body.