MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

£80m Defence Estates Contract in Falklands & Ascension Island.

Interserve, the British support services group announced June 8 it has won an £80 million contract with the Defence Estates agency to service and maintain the Ministry of Defence operations on the Falkland Islands and Ascension Island.

The contract is for a five-year period beginning in February 2005 with the option of a two-year extension. Between now and then there is a period of mobilisation and parallel running with the existing works service management (WSM) contract, which expires at the end of January 2005.

As a fundamental part of its service Interserve will implement its own comprehensive information management systems and help-desk facility. Approximately 300 local and expatriate UK staff will deliver services including

? Mechanical and electrical asset maintenance ? Power generation ? Sewage and water treatment ? Construction plant and equipment maintenance ? Waste disposal ? Grounds maintenance ? Airfield ground lighting ? Stores management

Although the MOD's presence in the Falklands is primarily defensive, the Islands also provide an important training ground in a unique and testing environment. Some 1.700 military personnel are based at the Mount Pleasant Complex, a self-contained garrison site 35 miles from the capital, Port Stanley. The site is centred on the main airstrip and the building infrastructure supports all the military activities, accommodation and leisure facilities. In addition there are a number of outlying sites both on the East and West Islands. Ascension Island, meanwhile, is a strategically important stop-over point for the UK military travelling to the Falklands.

"This contract win is founded on our key skills in integrating the management of a number of diverse services in one efficient package," said Sam Maroli, Managing Director of Interservefm Ltd's, "and it's particularly gratifying as we've been able to build on the WSM contract we currently hold in the Falklands. The award demonstrates Defence Estates' belief that we can, in the words of the contract rationale, 'achieve and maintain the highest standards of infrastructure management and maintenance consistent with good engineering practice and value for money".

Interserve is a major player in the support services market, ranked in the FTSE 250 with a turnover of over £1.2 billion in 2003 and employing over 13,000 people worldwide. Their wide range of services underpin the core operations of organisations in both the public and private sectors, from hospitals, schools and the Ministry of Defence to infrastructure, petrochemical companies and the utilities.