Crisis-hit construction group Carillion “has no intention” of withdrawing from the Aberdeen city bypass road consortium as the £745million project nears completion.
Carillion refused to comment yesterday on the prospects of it being able to complete the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route (AWPR).
The firm is part of the Aberdeen Roads consortium, alongside Galliford Try-owned Morrison Construction and Balfour Beatty.
But a spokesman for Transport Scotland, which awarded the huge contract in December 2014, said: “Aberdeen Roads Limited has reaffirmed its commitment to the AWPR/ B-T (Balmedie to Tipperty) project in recent weeks.
“It has also confirmed that Carillion has no intention of withdrawing from the AWPR/B-T project and that they too remain committed to completing it in accordance with the contract.”
He added: “It would be inappropriate for us to comment on any individual contractor’s internal financial governance.”
Costs for the massive infrastructure project are believed to have rocketed well beyond the contract price, but at no extra cost to the taxpayer.
Carillion, which is under investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority, has posted a string of profit warnings since July, when it said a large chunk of an £845million write-down was for three UK projects – one of which is understood to be the AWPR.
The Wolverhampton firm later warned it was in danger of breaching banking covenants, while recent reports have suggested it is now racing to secure new funding to avoid collapse.