4 Aug 2008

Interserve, the services, maintenance and building group, in consortium with John Laing, has won the PFI contract to create and manage a new office and accommodation complex for the MoD at Corsham, Wiltshire. The construction and facilities management value of the project is £310 million.

The MoD, through Defence Equipment and Support's Information Systems & Services organisation (DE&S ISS), will establish a communication centre of excellence at Corsham, with a working and living environment capable of supporting an estimated 2,200 military and civilian staff. All essential DE&S ISS MoD personnel and business partners will co-locate on the single site.

The consortium will work with DE&S ISS and Defence Estates throughout the project. Interserve will be involved alongside Laing O'Rourke during the construction of the new flagship offices and single living accommodation and will then provide a range of facilities management services worth £194 million over the 25-year operational phase.

Construction will begin immediately and is expected to be complete by 2011. Interserve and John Laing will each invest £7.0 million in the project as their respective 50 per cent equity/sub-debt stake.

"The agreement of this strategically important contract represents a unique opportunity," remarked Adrian Ringrose, Interserve's Chief Executive. "Working with our consortium partners we shall create and manage a specialised environment that will allow the MoD to exploit fully its world-leading communications expertise. We shall be drawing on our experience of defence operations gained over many years in contracts where we support the MoD both in the UK, such as in our management of the entire Defence Training Estate, and abroad in locations including Cyprus and the South Atlantic."