Jarvis goes into administration

UK rail contractor Jarvis has put itself into administration - an alternative to insolvency - following its lenders' refusal to fund it further. Trading in the company's shares has been suspended.

Jarvis had warned last month that economic conditions and reductions in rail work meant that its trading conditions had become difficult. It said it was focussed on improving the company's financial position and safe-guarding its long-term future.

However, a statement today said it had not been able to secure enough support for its plans from creditors and customers. "Following negotiations with the company's secured lenders, it has today become clear that sufficient support will not be extended to the company to enable it to continue trading as a going concern," it said.

Jarvis, which is more than 150 years old, has come close to collapse before. In 2004 it was forced to sell-off its road building business and portfolio of Private Finance Initiative (PFI) concessions to pay down debt following a period of acquisition-fuelled growth under CEO Paris Maoyedi.

The company refocused on the UK rail sector following these sell-offs. At its peak in 2004 Jarvis was ranked 39^th in the CE-100 league table of Europe's largest construction companies.