John Laing sees value of PFI equity portfolio jump 38%

The value of John Laing’s infrastructure portfolio rose by more than a third to £610m in 2007.

Underlying growth, excluding the effect of acquisitions, accounted for a lift of 21%.

Laing’s full financial figures are still in the pipeline, but in 2006 it made a pre-tax profit of £5m on a turnover of £600m though the profit figure was trimmed back severely by an exceptional cost of £11m, a result of the publicly quoted group being bought by Henderson Infrastructure for £1bn.

The result was that Laing’s shares were taken off the Stock Exchange in December 2006 as the group went private.

Today’s statement puts the now-less-noticeable Laing back into the public eye.

Adrian Ewer, chief executive, said that in the UK, 625 PFI projects have been signed with a £59bn capital value. This tally divides between:

• 510 projects now operational; 
• Deals signed in 2007 with a total capital value running to £5.3bn; and
• Projects worth a total of £23bn waiting to be signed over the next five years.

There is also a local authority pipeline of £20bn – of which £8bn is not yet scheduled.

“We continue to see good opportunities in this, our largest market, the speed and extent of growth is slowing as it reaches maturity,” said Ewer.

“There continues to be a strong range of opportunities across key sectors: health, education, roads (including street lighting and highways maintenance), waste and regeneration focused on social housing.”

Laing’s growth opportunities will come from the international markets selected by the group:

• Europe
• USA
• Canada
• India
• SE Asia

Seven projects reached financial close in 2007. Laing’s commitment runs to a record total of £102m split between:

• £35m – N Staffs hospital
• £19m – M6 in Hungary
• £15m – Forth Valley hospital
• £12m – Brockley social housing
• £11m – Hastings College
• £7m – St Lukes hospital
• £3m – E Dunbartonshire schools