THE administrators called in to help find a buyer for Cleveland Bridge say the Covid pandemic is to blame for yesterday's shocking news.

But they say they have already started the search for investors to buy the business and secure its future.

They say the UK business’ finances have been severely impacted by delays to projects in the UK and internationally as a result of the pandemic, and requires significant further investment.

Read more: Cleveland Bridge calls in administrators: All we know so far

Joint Administrators Martyn Pullin, David Willis, and Iain Townsend of specialist business advisory firm FRP have been appointed to help save the business, which has 221 staff at its headquarters in Darlington and an engineering site in Newport, South Wales. The business also has 48 contractors in Darlington and around 50 contractors on various sites.

The Northern Echo:

They will now market the business for sale and engage with CBUK’s clients to discuss continued support on live projects. The Administrators say they will "engage with staff and decisions will be made on any necessary redundancies".

Martyn Pullin, Partner at FRP, said: “Cleveland Bridge UK has been a flagbearer for cutting edge British engineering for more than a century. But no business is immune to the far-reaching impact of the pandemic, which has delayed major infrastructure projects around the world and put significant financial pressure on the teams behind them.

Read more: 7 bridges (and a famous arch) built by Darlington's Cleveland Bridge

“CBUK is a business with a proud history and a formidable track record of engineering excellence. It also has great potential and should attract interest from the steel fabricants sector and other firms looking to break into the specialist bridge building market. Unfortunately, without significant investment, the business will be wound up. That is why we’re calling on any interested parties to come forward.

“Regrettably, the business is unable to continue operating at its current capacity. We are urgently reviewing contracted work in progress to determine the shape of the business going forward.”

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