Engineering group Murray & Roberts (M&R) says its subsidiary Clough and joint-venture partner Acciona have preferred status for a R2.4bn infrastructure project in Western Australia.
Clough's share is about R1.2bn and M&R says the receipt of preferred proponent status reflects the group's success in diversifying Clough away from a single-cyclical market, that of Australian liquefied natural gas.
Preferred proponent means the bidder who made the best proposal and may be awarded the contract.
The specialist engineering group, which started life in 1902 as a builder in the-then Cape Colony, has spent the past few years diversifying its businesses to mitigate its exposure to cyclical natural resources contracts.
Its diversification has included its oil and gas business taking hydroelectric , or gas-to-power projects, and specialised infrastructure work.
The group previously said this has paid off, and it reported earlier in 2021 that its order book stood at a record R60.5bn at the end of December, primarily consisting of an energy, resources and infrastructure platform, which trades under Clough.
Joint venture partner Acciona invests in, develops and operates infrastructure assets, and the project will start towards end of 2021 and will run for the next two years, the group said.
Valued at R4.4bn on the JSE, M&R has cited its order book as a reason it expects strong earnings growth over the next three years.
In afternoon trade on Friday the group's shares were trading 0.2% higher at R10, having risen 62% over the past 12 months, but having declined more than a fifth over the past five years.
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