John Laing Group plc is a British investor, developer and operator of privately financed, public sector infrastructure projects such as roads, railways, hospitals and schools through
Public-Private Partnership (PPP) and
Private Finance Initiative
The private finance initiative (PFI) was a United Kingdom government procurement policy aimed at creating " public–private partnerships" (PPPs) where private firms are contracted to complete and manage public projects. Initially launched in 1 ...
(PFI) arrangements. It was listed on the
London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pa ...
and was a constituent of the
FTSE 250 Index until the court approved the acquisition of the company by
KKR
KKR & Co. Inc., also known as Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., is an American global investment company that manages multiple alternative asset classes, including private equity, energy, infrastructure, real estate, credit, and, through its strateg ...
in September 2021.
History
The business can trace its roots back to 1848 when James Laing (born in 1816), along with his wife Ann Graham, and some employees whom they had hired, built a house on a plot of land that they had bought for £30 in
Cumberland. The £150 proceeds from the first house financed the building of the next two houses on the same plot of land, one of which (Caldew House in
Sebergham
Sebergham is a small village and civil parish in the English county of Cumbria. It is located on the B5305, south of Carlisle and south-east of Wigton. The civil parish population at the 2011 Census was 365.
St Mary's Church is medieval in ori ...
) was kept by the
Laing family The Laing Family is a British family. The family is famous through their association with John Laing plc, a construction company founded in 1848. The company grew under the leadership of Sir John Laing and passed through the hands of his sons S ...
to live in. The family and the business later moved near
Carlisle
Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers Eden, Caldew and Petteril. It is the administrative centre of the City ...
.
When James Laing died in 1882, his son, John Laing (born in 1842) took over the running of the company. John began to undertake larger contracts but confined the business to the
Carlisle
Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers Eden, Caldew and Petteril. It is the administrative centre of the City ...
area.
[ John's son, John William Laing, (born in 1879) was working for the business before he was 20 years old, and so it became John Laing and Son. By 1910, John William Laing was running the business. More employees were recruited and larger projects were undertaken, including factory construction.][ In 1920, the firm became a limited company, and two years later moved its headquarters from Carlisle to a site at Mill Hill in north-west ]London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
.[ During the ]Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, the company was one of the contractors engaged in building the Mulberry harbour units. William Kirby Laing and John Maurice Laing, the fifth generation of the founding family, joined the company in 1950.[ John Laing & Sons (Holdings) Ltd was first listed on the ]London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pa ...
in January 1953. The family and its trusts and charities held the majority of the shares. John William Laing became the chairman, and his sons became joint managing directors. By this time, the number of employees was around 10,000, and every site had a quality supervisor. John William Laing retired in 1957. The company acquired Holloway Brothers in 1964.
Under William Kirby Laing and John Maurice Laing, the company continued to expand, winning contracts for power stations and diversifying into road construction while continuing to build houses. In 1985, Martin Laing
Sir John Martin Kirby Laing (born 18 January 1942) is a British entrepreneur in the construction industry.
Martin Laing was executive chairman of John Laing plc, the firm founded by his great-great-grandfather James Laing (1816–1882), but re ...
, of the sixth generation of the founding family, became chairman. Martin Laing determined that the company should begin to diversify. Home construction in the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries by area, fifth-largest country in Asia ...
, Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...
, the United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at ...
, Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
, Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, ...
, and California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...
was now one of the major sources of the company's growth. As the company celebrated its 150th anniversary in 1998, it faced falling profits caused by cost overruns on the Millennium project and continuing problems within its construction division, related to competition and overcapacity. In 1999, John Laing plc purchased a controlling interest in the Chiltern Railway
Chiltern Railways, formally The Chiltern Railway Company Limited, is a British train operating company that has operated the Chiltern Railways franchise since July 1996. Since 2009, it has been a subsidiary of Arriva UK Trains.
Chiltern Railwa ...
franchise and by 2002 had structured itself into two main divisions, namely Homes and Investments. It underwent yet another change when Sir Martin Laing retired in early 2002. Bill Forrester took over as executive chairman.
The business expanded rapidly in the late 1990s, such that for the year ended 31 December 2001 its turnover was in excess of £1 billion. Following significant losses on certain construction contracts (particularly the Cardiff Millennium Stadium) the company cut 800 jobs and in 2001 disposed of its construction division to O'Rourke for £1. It focused instead on its PPP / PFI activities. Laing's property developments divisions were sold to Kier Group, and its house building arm was sold to George Wimpey in 2002. In 2003, its affordable housing division was sold in a management buy-out.
In December 2006, John Laing plc was acquired by the private equity arm of Henderson Group. The Laing Rail division - operators of Chiltern Railways
Chiltern Railways, formally The Chiltern Railway Company Limited, is a British train operating company that has operated the Chiltern Railways franchise since July 1996. Since 2009, it has been a subsidiary of Arriva UK Trains.
Chiltern Rai ...
and London Overground
London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, (via archive.org). it now serves a large part of Greater London as w ...
(with MTR Corporation), and holders of a stake in the open-access railway operator Wrexham & Shropshire - was put up for sale by in September 2007. The division was purchased by German rail operator Deutsche Bahn
The (; abbreviated as DB or DB AG) is the national railway company of Germany. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). The Federal Republic of Germany is its single shareholder.
describes itself as the ...
in January 2008.
In June 2008, John Laing formed a consortium with Hitachi
() is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the parent company of the Hitachi Group (''Hitachi Gurūpu'') and had formed part of the Ni ...
and Barclays Private Equity called Agility Trains to bid for the contract to design, manufacture, and maintain a fleet of long-distance trains for the Intercity Express Programme. The bid was successful and the contract was awarded to the consortium on the 12 February 2009. The company established the John Laing Infrastructure Fund in 2010 in a £270 million public launch. Then in October 2013, the company sold its facilities management business to Carillion. Olivier Brousse was appointed as Chief Executive in March 2014. The John Laing Environmental Fund was established in 2014 in a £174 million public launch. In February 2015, the company became listed on the London Stock Exchange again.
In September 2018, John Laing sold the John Laing Infrastructure Fund Ltd. to Dalmore Capital and Equitix Investment Management. In June 2019, John Laing sold the Investment Advisory Agreement between John Laing Capital Management Ltd. and John Laing Environmental Fund Ltd. to Foresight Group CI Ltd.
On 19 May 2021, Private equity firm KKR
KKR & Co. Inc., also known as Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., is an American global investment company that manages multiple alternative asset classes, including private equity, energy, infrastructure, real estate, credit, and, through its strateg ...
said it has agreed to buy British infrastructure investor John Laing Group in a deal valued at about £2 billion ($2.84 billion). John Laing confirmed that it would unanimously recommend to shareholders to back the deal, whose terms it considered to be fair and reasonable. The transaction was approved by the court in September 2021.
Operations
John Laing is a globally-active investor and asset manager, principally for public sector projects that require private finance. The group has offices in Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia Pacific and invests in transport (including road, rail, rolling stock and bridges), social infrastructure (including leisure, healthcare and criminal justice) and renewable energy (including on and offshore solar and wind). The group divides its operations into three areas:
Primary Investment - Sourcing, bidding for and winning greenfield infrastructure projects.
Secondary Investment - Holding operational infrastructure investments, mainly from its own primary investments.
Asset Management - Asset Management services to both the primary and secondary investment portfolios. Asset management skills include: value enhancement; project delivery during the construction phase; technical input; and managed services through Management Services Agreements.
Significant investments
Significant investments include:
*The Intercity Express Programme, sold 2018
*The Greater Manchester Waste Recycling and Combined Heat & Power Programme
*The New Royal Adelaide Hospital
The Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH), colloquially known by its initials or pronounced as "the Rah", is South Australia's largest hospital, owned by the state government as part of Australia's public health care system. The RAH provides tertiary he ...
*The A1 Autostrada in Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...
*The Denver Eagle P3 Project
Former operations
Laing Construction
John Laing’s former construction division, now absorbed into Laing O'Rourke
Laing O'Rourke is a multinational construction company headquartered in Dartford, England. It was founded in 1978 by Ray O'Rourke. It is the largest privately owned construction company in the United Kingdom.
History
The company was founded b ...
, undertook a number of landmark projects including:
*The Chapelhouse Reservoir completed in 1900
* Catterick Camp completed in 1930
* Shenley Hospital completed in 1932
*Warwick Hall
Warwick Hall is a large country house located on the banks of the River Eden at Warwick-on-Eden in Cumbria, England, United Kingdom.
History
The original Warwick Hall was occupied by the Warwick family until it ceased to exist when Ann Warwick ...
in Cumbria
Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. ...
completed in 1933
* Holme Moss transmitting station completed in 1951
*the Spelga Reservoir completed in 1957
*the Electra Building in Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...
completed in 1957[Ritchie, p. 129]
* Government House, Victoria completed in 1959[
*the ]M1 motorway
The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the country was the Preston By-pass, whic ...
completed in 1959
* Coventry Cathedral completed in 1962
* New Century House, Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
completed in 1962
* County Hall, Durham completed in 1963
*the Bull Ring completed in 1964
*Carlisle Civic Centre
Carlisle Civic Centre is a municipal building in the Rickergate, Carlisle, England. It is the headquarters of Carlisle City Council.
History
The civic centre was commissioned to replacing the aging Town Hall in the Market Place. The new build ...
completed in 1964
* Lanark County Buildings completed in 1964
* Westway completed in 1970
* Clifton Cathedral completed in 1973
* St Thomas' Hospital North Wing completed in 1975
* London Central Mosque completed in 1977
*the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is a ...
completed in 1977
* St David's Hall in Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...
completed in 1982
* Mount Pleasant Airfield completed in 1986
*Borders General Hospital
Borders General Hospital (BGH) is a district general hospital on the outskirts of Melrose, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Borders.
History
The hospital was commissioned to replace the ageing Peel Hospital at Caddonfoot near Galashiels. The S ...
completed in 1988
*the Stansted Airport Terminal Building completed in 1991
*the Sizewell B nuclear power station completed in 1995
*the Second Severn Crossing completed in 1996
* Bridgewater Hall in Manchester completed in 1996
*the British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the Briti ...
completed in 1997
*the Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm y Mileniwm), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Principality) for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it is the home of the Wales national ru ...
in Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...
completed in 1999[
* Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital completed in 2001
]
Laing Rail
The subsidiary Laing Rail owned and operated Chiltern Railways
Chiltern Railways, formally The Chiltern Railway Company Limited, is a British train operating company that has operated the Chiltern Railways franchise since July 1996. Since 2009, it has been a subsidiary of Arriva UK Trains.
Chiltern Rai ...
and was joint operator of London Overground
London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, (via archive.org). it now serves a large part of Greater London as w ...
(with MTR Corporation) and Wrexham & Shropshire (with Renaissance Trains). In 2008 Laing Rail was sold to Deutsche Bahn
The (; abbreviated as DB or DB AG) is the national railway company of Germany. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). The Federal Republic of Germany is its single shareholder.
describes itself as the ...
.[
]
Musical reference
Along with Sir Robert McAlpine and George Wimpey, Laing is mentioned in the opening preamble to the 1960 Dominic Behan satirical Irish ballard McAlpine's Fusiliers.
References
Sources
*
*
External links
Official site
{{Authority control
Construction and civil engineering companies of the United Kingdom
British companies established in 1848
2015 initial public offerings
Infrastructure in the United Kingdom
1848 establishments in England
Companies formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange
Construction and civil engineering companies established in 1848
2021 mergers and acquisitions
Private equity portfolio companies