Strabag has secured a contract worth around £3bn to upgrade a critical water pipeline in North West England.
The Austrian contractor’s UK arm will design and deliver the Haweswater Aqueduct Resilience Programme (HARP) for United Utilities, replacing six tunnel sections of the 110km aqueduct that carries drinking water from the Lake District into Greater Manchester.
Strabag is leading the construction element of the scheme through Cascade Infrastructure Limited, a project company formed with London-based investor Equitix and infrastructure fund GLIL Infrastructure.
The consortium was named preferred bidder in January, when the project cost was estimated at £2.9bn, up from £1.75bn when first tendered in 2022.
The contract covers financing, design, construction and a 25-year maintenance term. United Utilities said the eight to nine-year construction phase will be the UK’s first major project delivered through the Direct Procurement for Customers (DPC) model.
Strabag has been expanding its UK presence in line with its Strategy 2030, with water infrastructure and long-term concession models forming a growing part of its portfolio.
Its equity commitments across PPP, DPC and concession projects now exceed €600m, spanning more than 40 schemes worth over €13bn.
United Utilities chief executive Louise Beardmore said the project would secure resilient water supplies for 2.5m people across Cumbria, Lancashire and Greater Manchester for decades to come.
Source: Strabag announcement