Contractors awarded £64m payout as bypass row reaches the end of the road

CONTRACTORS Galliford Try and Balfour Beatty have won £64m in compensation for a contract that played a pivotal role in the downfall of Carillion after Scottish ministers caved into their demands.

The pair won the money from Transport Scotland as the two sides seek to draw a line under the disastrous building of the Aberdeen bypass – averting a legal showdown in court.

A fixed-price £745m contract to build the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route was originally awarded to a joint venture that also included Carillion. But the bill for the project spiralled out of control after a series of delays and surged to £1bn, leaving the firms to foot the extra costs. Galliford Try and Balfour Beatty took on Carillion’s commitments after the contractor imploded in January 2018. The Aberdeen roads project was one of a handful of deals that led to its downfall.

The bypass, which was first approved in 2009, finally opened in February after a string of overruns.

Galliford Try and Balfour Beatty said yesterday that they expect to receive £32m each. A Transport Scotland spokesman said: “Transport Scotland has agreed in principle a full and final commercial settlement. Overall, the benefits are plain for everyone to see.”