Yorkshire steelwork contractor Severfield reports record UK and Europe order book of £479m

In a trading update for the year ended March 31, 2022, the Thirsk-based group reported that it had a strong balance sheet and was in a good financial position.

In the second half of the year, Severfield continued to secure a significant value of new work, resulting in a record UK and Europe order book of £479m at April 1, 2022, up from £393m on November 2021, of which £382m is for delivery over the next 12 months.

Severfield said: “The order book remains well-diversified and contains a healthy mix of projects across the group's key market sectors.

“In terms of geographical spread, 94 per cent of this order book represents projects in the UK, with the remaining 6 per cent representing projects for delivery in Europe and the Republic of Ireland.

“We continue to be encouraged by the current level of tendering activity across the group, both in the UK and in continental Europe, and are well-positioned to take advantage of some significant opportunities in the industrial and distribution (battery plants and distribution centres), stadia and leisure, transport infrastructure, nuclear and data centre sectors.

“Despite seeing further input cost inflation (including in steel prices) and some disruption to raw material supplies as a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, we are currently managing these effectively, and steel remains largely a pass-through cost for the Group.”

Its Indian joint venture (JSSL) performed profitably and in line with expectations in the second half of the year.

This follows a difficult start to the year when output was disrupted by the second wave of Covid-19. Notwithstanding some current inflationary pressures, JSSL has continued to win new work, resulting in a record order book of £166m at April 1, 2022, up from £140m in November 2021.

Severfield, which has six sites and around 1,500 employees, says the outlook for the group remains positive.

“With a record UK and Europe order book of £479m, a very encouraging pipeline of opportunities, and a well-positioned business in India, the outlook for the group remains positive, although we remain mindful of the ongoing effects of Russia's invasion of Ukraine,” it said in a statement.