HUNDREDS of construction jobs in the Mid-West are at jeopardy after Roadbridge announced it is to go into receivership.
In a statement on Friday, the Limerick based company which is one of the country’s biggest civil engineering and construction firms announced it is to go into receivership. Stephen Tennant and Nicholas O’Dwyer of Grant Thornton have been appointed as the receivers.
Recent weeks have seen employees grow anxious on the company’s future. Roadbridge owes an estimated €30-35m to its main creditor Bank of Ireland on top of mounting trade liabilities.
Founded by Pat Mulcair in 1967 and incorporated as a company in 1999, Roadbridge employs 630 people in Ireland, the UK and Sweden and a further 1,000 subcontractor and agency workers, it was involved in some of the biggest infrastructural road, energy and water projects in Ireland the UK and Europe. It has been involved in the construction of Terminal 2 at Dublin Airport, the Limerick Tunnel, and the Limerick Greenway.
Over the past year, the Coonagh to Knockalisheen section of the Limerick Northern Distributor Road, the N5 Ballaghadreen by-pass in Roscommon and A465 PPP Motorway Project in Wales were the top three projects secured by Roadbridge. The firm had building contracts worth a total of €750m over the next two to three years. This latest development is feared to have a two year setback on the LNDR.
“Insurmountable financial challenges,” were referenced by the Board of Roadbridge Holdings Ltd as its reason for requesting Bank of Ireland to appoint receivers to the company.
Turnover at Roadbridge reached €246m in 2020, only dropping slightly from the 2019 figure of €271m. The company lost money on several projects, including some in Scotland. Rising energy and building materials costs aggravated its difficulties through 2021. It had invested heavily in the building of the High Speed 2 rail network, a major UK construction project with an expected outturn cost of over £100bn.
Aidan Murphy, Chairman of Roadbridge said they have been “working tirelessly” for the last number of months to find a solution to the “grave challenges” faced by the company. “My fellow directors and I greatly regret having to take this step, but unfortunately, it was the only possible option at this time,” he said. “The Board recognise the support of all our stakeholders, including our bank, Bank of Ireland, in difficult circumstances as the directors explored every opportunity to save the company. We are committed to working closely with the receivers now in order to get the best possible outcome for employees, creditors and stakeholders”.
Parteen native, Conor Gilligan departed his role as Chief Executive of the company over a month ago, bringing an end to his 31 year tenure with the business. In an interview in October, he predicted their turnover would rise to €300m for 2021 and stated, “Our order book is secured for the next three years and the future is bright”.
