Octavius Infrastructure has reported a 16.7 per cent increase in turnover to £322.9m for the year to 31 March 2025, driven mainly by growth in railway and highway work.
Pre-tax profit rose 84 per cent from £4.7m to £8.6m, giving a pre-tax margin of 2.7 per cent, up from 1.7 per cent the previous year.
The firm said the increase in turnover was due to a rise in the volume of bids won and projects delivered during the year. Meanwhile, income from R&W Civil Engineering and Navitas Engineering, which Octavius bought the previous year, contributed £38.8m.
“The growth in the core business was primarily due to growth in the highways business unit,” the company stated.
Referring to the five-year railway infrastructure investment cycle, Control Period 7 (2024-29), it added: “Increased volumes in established frameworks within the rail business unit have also contributed to the increased turnover, supported by a solid start to [the] CP7 period.”
Net assets rose 23 per cent to £26.7m. Cash at bank more than doubled to £16m, although net cash generated from operating activities fell from £16.7m to £3.5m.
The firm’s average monthly headcount rose from 598 to 684, a 14.4 per cent increase.
Its directors identified skilled-labour shortages, supply chain fragility and inflation as continuing challenges.
However, they said Octavius aimed to grow by expanding its presence in rail and highways, and by targeting adjacent infrastructure markets.
The directors said framework positions would be used to secure long-term workloads.
A dividend of £2m was paid to parent company Topham Bidco, which owns the business.
Octavius has rapidly scaled up its operations since its creation in 2021, following the sale of Geoffrey Osborne’s rail and highways division to private equity firm Sullivan Street.
It was ranked 80th in the 2024 CN100 table of the UK’s top contractors.
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Colin Marrs