WYG secures contract in Libya

The project management and technical consultancy business has been appointed as the key partner in a consortium, led by Cardno, that has been awarded a major new contract in Libya by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID).

The contract forms part of the UK’s Security, Justice and Defence (SJD) programme in Libya, funded and overseen jointly by DFID, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO), and Ministry of Defence (MoD).

Under the contract WYG, in a joint venture with the Australian, ASX-200 listed professional infrastructure and environmental services company, Cardno, will deliver the first phase of a programme to support the Libyan authorities in providing more effective, accountable and sustainable security, justice and defence for its citizens, over a period of up to 34 months.

A WYG spokesman said: “Our initial work will culminate in the delivery of an inception report which, if accepted, we expect to lead to further work on the project which has a total potential value of approximately £28m and would involve overseeing the training of police officers and judicial police. Other components would include improving court administration and security, securing munitions, and weapons stockpiling and decommissioning.

Paul Hamer, the chief executive Officer of WYG, said: ”This contract win is a major achievement as it is the single largest stabilisation project in Libya tendered by DFID to date, demonstrating WYG’s expertise and leadership in delivering critical, strategic programmes in fragile and conflict affected states over the past 20 years as well as its ability to create growth by working closely with globally recognized partners such as Cardno. It builds on our experience in delivering large scale and complex projects, which include the £68m infrastructure Projects Facility (IPF) in the Western Balkans, and positions us well to continue building on our key strength in fragile states by converting our strong pipeline of opportunities.”

David Burton, managing director of Cardno Emerging Markets UK & Europe, added: ”I am delighted that Cardno has been selected to work together with WYG to deliver one of the most significant projects in Libya’s journey to post-conflict stabilisation. We will be drawing on our collective experience built up over more than 20 years in the challenging fields of post-conflict resolution, recovery and reintegration to help the Libyan government achieve its long term objectives.”

In the year ended March 31 2014, WYG’s revenue was £126.9m, compared with £125.7m the year before. The adjusted operating profit was £4.8m, compared with £1.5m in the previous year.