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Multiplex will build Make architects 1 Leadenhall tower
Multiplex UK made a pre-tax loss of £158.6m in 2020, which it has blamed on the COVID-19 pandemic.
The contractor, best known for its work on high-rise projects in London, closed its sites after lockdown was introduced in late March 2020 and said its productivity was hit after it began reopening sites a month later.
Its turnover stood at £599m for the year to 31 December 2020, down from the £872m recorded for the previous 12 months.
It had said, when it released its 2019 results, that its pandemic-related loss would be between £130m and £170m. The £158.6m figures was down from the £14m pre-tax loss it reported for 2019.
Cases of coronavirus have been confirmed among the workforce at Multiplex’s major University of Glasgow project.
Rejecting media reports that there had been an “outbreak”, a spokesman for the contractor confirmed there were a “limited number” of cases on the project – which is a £298m scheme to deliver five new academic buildings. He said only essential personnel are working on site.
The spokesman added: “Protecting our workforce and the general public from COVID-19 is our number one priority. Multiplex was the first contractor in the UK to shut down all sites in response to the pandemic last March, and the procedures and protocols we have put in place have resulted in only a limited number of positive COVID-19 cases on our sites, including the University of Glasgow.