In its latest trading update, it said its forward order book stands at £2.4bn, up by 20% compared with 30 June last year, including £900m of work secured for 2009.

Since the beginning of the year, the firm has secured a £397m contract for the Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority, a 10-year contract with water group Severn Trent worth an estimated £400m and in a joint venture a further five-year maintenance contract worth £200m for the Highways Agency.