Turnover at French giant tops â‚¬50bn mark

Profit at the construction arm of Bouygues, which is helping build part of the HS2 railway in the Chilterns, went up last year, the firm said in its latest results.

According to the French giant’s full-year results for 2023, operating profit from activities in its construction rose 9% to €851m (£728m).

The firm has redefined what it includes in its construction business but income rose 2% to €27.3bn (£23.4bn) with Bouygues saying work from its Colas rail arm was up 3% to €16bn (£13.7bn) which was helped by a €215m (£184m) contract it was handed for work at the HS2 station at Old Oak Common in west London.

Bouygues

Construction is Bouygues’ biggest business

Bouygues, which operates in a range of areas from construction to media and telecoms, said group revenue jumped 26% to €56bn (£48bn) with operating profit up 19% to €2.4bn (£2bn).

Bouygues, which has also been working on the Hinkley Point C scheme in Somerset, said last autumn that it had racked up a £42m pre-tax loss at its UK arm in 2022 from an £835,000 profit last time. Turnover in 2022 fell 21% to £383m.