Webuild expands presence in Australia and PPP projects as new orders reach €10.6 BLN globally in 2021 

MILAN, Oct 28, 2021 – Webuild, as part of the Spark consortium, has signed a contract that values its stake at AU$3.3 billion (€2.1 billion) in the North East Link PPP Primary Package in Melbourne, Australia, a AU$11.1-billion project in which the Group will take part in its design and construction. Webuild will also own a 7.5% equity stake in the project company that will operate and maintain the infrastructure once it is completed. 

The contract, for which Webuild and its partners had been identified as the preferred bidders in June, brings to €10.6 billion the total value of new orders that Webuild has acquired, is in the process of finalising, or for which it has become the preferred bidder so far this year globally, in addition to the €13‐billion contract to build the first high‐speed railway in Texas.

The North East Link is the largest private-public partnership (PPP) for an infrastructure project in Australia, one with a strong element of sustainability that will provide an essential link in the city’s freeway network, reducing congestion and travel times for tens of thousands of motorists. It will take 15,000 trucks off local roads every day and reduce travel times by up to 35 minutes for commuters.

Webuild, as part of the design and construction joint-venture, will design and build twin three-lane tunnels approximately 6.5 kilometres long, among other related works. Once completed, the North East Link PPP will be the longest road tunnel in the state of Victoria.

The tunnelling work is part of the Primary Package that the Spark consortium was awarded by the North East Link Authority, which is overseeing the development of the entire project, fixing the missing link in Melbourne’s freeway network between the M80 and the Eastern Freeway in the city’s northeast. The PPP will adopt an Incentivised Target Cost contracting structure that encourages transparency and collaboration between the client and the Spark design and construction joint venture. 

“Australia is a strategic market for us in light of the possibilities that it offers in terms of sustainable mobility and renewable energy,” said Pietro Salini, Chief Executive of Webuild. “We are proud to be leaders of this joint-venture of international companies that will build the NEL. The contract is a major achievement for the Group. It is the culmination of years of commitment that Webuild has made to a market where it aims to grow and consolidate its presence. It is also recognition of our people’s expertise in light of the experience acquired building some of the largest and most challenging infrastructure projects in the world.” 

In a sign of Australia’s importance as a core market for Webuild, the Group has opened a second office in the country in Melbourne and begun collaborating with the University of Melbourne on two scholarships to encourage female students to become engineers. It has a similar collaboration with the University of Technology Sydney, while recently signing an agreement with the University of Queensland.

In the state of New South Wales, Webuild is building Snowy 2.0, the largest hydropower project in the country. In Western Australia, it is nearing the completion of the Forrestfield-Airport Link in Perth to connect the eastern suburbs with the airport and the city centre. 

A global leader in the sustainable infrastructure with a presence in 50 countries, Webuild’s track record includes the construction of approximately 80,300 kilometres of roads and motorways, and the excavation of approximately 2,400 kilometres of tunnels.