Firm will announce interim results in March
Kier said it has completed rejigging its business which has seen it pull out of loss-making international markets in Hong Kong and the Caribbean.
The firm decided to quit the Caribbean in summer 2016 and had originally said the cost of closing this arm would be 拢18m.
But last year the firm was forced to concede that its final bill for getting out of the region would be 拢83m 鈥� five times the original estimate.
In an interim trading update this morning, Kier made no mention of the two regions by name but said it had 鈥渃oncluded its two-year portfolio simplification programme, in line with previous guidance鈥�.
The rejig included the sale of Mouchel Consulting to WSP for 拢75m back in October 2016.
It said it is negotiating with Highways England to extend two of its road maintenance contracts for a further three years.
The firm said it expected a final decision on its Area 3 contract covering southern England, including Surrey, Hampshire and Dorset, and its Area 9 contract for major roads around Birmingham, including the M6 Spaghetti Junction, and the wider West Midlands by the end of March.
Last week the firm said it had taken sole responsibility for the 拢475m of smart motorways schemes it was working on in joint venture with collapsed contractor Carillion.
Kier and joint venture partner, French firm Eiffage, will also now be responsible for carrying out work on two HS2 contracts to dig tunnels under the Chilterns the pair had originally won with Carillion last summer.
Kier said last summer鈥檚 acquisition of McNicholas Construction, better known as Green Macs, was bedding in and added that Green Macs had recently extended a number of gas pipeline jobs in Northern Ireland.
Investment in the property and residential businesses has led to an increase in Kier鈥檚 net debt for the period to between 拢230m and 拢240m and which includes the cost of its Green Macs deal.
Cenkos analyst Kevin Cammack said no exceptional items was 鈥渁 confidence booster鈥� but warned that wth average month-end debt of 拢350m, it needed to make inroads into that number over the next two years.
Chief executive Haydn Mursell (pictured) said: 鈥淭he Group remains on course to deliver double digit profit growth in the current year.鈥�
The firm鈥檚 order book for its construction and services arm sits at 拢9.5bn with 100% of revenue for the 2018 financial year secured.
It will release its results for the six months to December on 15 March.
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