Vinci Construction is to acquire infrastructure services business FM Conway, one of the biggest family-owned firms in the construction industry.
Highways specialist FM Conway will be bought for an undisclosed sum after it signed a share purchase agreement with Vinci’s UK construction business this week.
FM Conway said in a statement that it will “join the network of Vinci Construction to support the further growth of FM Conway and strengthen Vinci Construction’s position in the UK market”.
Subject to regulatory approval, the deal is expected to complete in early 2025.
At the time of publication, FM Conway had not officially released its results for the year to 31 March 2024. But in its statement, the firm said it achieved turnover of £580m in that financial year, an increase on the £535.3m it reported the year before.
Its 2022/23 turnover was also an increase on the £478.1m it posted the year prior, while pre-tax profit fell from £17.2m to £15.5m.
FM Conway chief executive and executive group chair Joanne Conway said: “The time is now right for the next chapter of our growth story. Beyond the obvious operational and commercial synergies, we share a set of values with Vinci and an approach to business that’s about putting people first, doing great work, and respecting the communities we operate in.”
Construction News asked FM Conway what Joanne Conway’s role would be following the acquisition, but had not received a reply by the time of publication.
Scott Wardrop, chief executive of Vinci Construction’s UK division, said: “This acquisition is a clear indication of our ambition to strengthen our business through greater self-delivery, and grow the circular economy in our UK market sectors.”
He added: “FM Conway is an excellent commercial and cultural fit for us, especially for Ringway, Eurovia and Taylor Woodrow. We’re looking forward to working alongside the FM Conway team to take the business to the next stage.”
In its latest results, for the year to 31 December 2023, Vinci Construction UK posted turnover of £2.29bn, up from £1.76bn in 2022. But its pre-tax loss deepened to £6.4m, compared with £5.1m the year prior.
The acquisition is Vinci’s latest in the construction space, after it acquired Taylor Woodrow, Eurovia and Ringway in recent years.
According to the latest edition of the CN100, FM Conway is the 37th biggest contractor in the UK, while Vinci is the eighth biggest. But Vinci’s newly consolidated position, before its acquisition of FM Conway, would have taken it to sixth in the table, behind Mace.
