BAM expects €500m turnover after earning profits of €23m in 2016

Contractors hired to build children’s hospital show that profits have more than doubled

BAM Contractors, the company hired to build the National Children’s Hospital, expects turnover this year to approach €500 million after earning profits in 2016 of €23 million.

The Dutch-owned builder’s newly-published accounts show that profits from its businesses more than doubled to €23.1 million last year from €11.4 million in 2015, while turnover dipped to €360 million from €385 million.

Chief executive Theo Cullinane said BAM was well positioned to grow in an improving economy. "Our secured turnover for 2017 is nearing €500 million," he added.

BAM broke ground on the €1 billion National Children’s Hospital in Dublin last year.

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The State hired the company as the main contractor for the project, the biggest single healthcare development in the State’s history, in 2016.

During last year, BAM built the One Molesworth Street office block for property player Green Reit and worked on Microsoft's new European HQ building in Sandyford, both in Dublin.

In Cork it is rebuilding the old Capitol Cinema as offices and shops for John Cleary Developments and is working on the Navigation Square commercial complex for O'Callaghan Properties

Infrastructure

Mark Reynolds, Nama's receiver on Boland's Quay on Dublin's Barrow Street, appointed BAM as main contractor to the €170 million office development there, which tech giant Google is close to buying. Construction there will employ 500 people.

BAM is a construction and civil engineering group that works mostly on commercial and infrastructure building for the State and private sectors.

Its accounts show that it had almost €120 million in cash at the end of last year, while net assets had grown more than 20 per cent to €68.7 million on December 31st from €56 million 12 months earlier.

More than €276 million of its turnover came from the Republic, while Northern Ireland and Britain contributed almost €41 million. The remaining €43 million came from its international operations.

BAM’s figures show that a once-off gain from a change agreed with trustees to members’ benefits from its defined benefit pension scheme added €21.5 million to profits.

A €3.6 million loss, down to a revaluation of its properties, reduced overall exceptional gains to €17.9 million, which brought pre-tax profits to €41 million.

After tax, its profit for the year was €35.2 million. A net loss of €18.2 million on its pension fund and a foreign exchange adjustment left it with profit for the year of €16.6 million.

Barry O'Halloran

Barry O'Halloran

Barry O’Halloran covers energy, construction, insolvency, and gaming and betting, among other areas