Graham has joined forces with Tyrone based PT McWilliams to secure a €45 million contract to construct a major bypass in County Offaly.
The 8.6 mile bypass will circle the town of Tullamore and over 200 people will be employed during construction. The scheme is scheduled to take two years to complete and will involve the construction of seven major bridges over rivers, a canal and railway line.
The scheme was officially launched today by the Republic’s Minister of Finance Brian Cowen, who is also a local TD for the area.
Mr Cowen said: “With the construction of some 14km of standard single carriageway the bypass is expected to remove in the region of 10,000 vehicles per day from the streets of Tullamore.”
According to Leo Martin, Director of Graham Projects, the contract is further evidence of the company’s growing involvement and reputation within the Public Sector market in the Irish Republic.
Mr Martin said, “This is a very important scheme for Graham and PT McWilliams and we are delighted to be working with the National Roads Authority. Graham has completed a number of key projects in the South in recent years both in the private and public sector and has in the region of €100million of work across various projects in the Irish Republic at the moment.
“Given our experience in major infrastructure projects in Northern Ireland we are obviously delighted to be increasingly involved with similar major schemes in the South. The Tullamore scheme forms part of the Government’s overall programme of improvements to relieve congestion and meet the national objectives of promoting road safety. We are very impressed with the level of vision and commitment shown by the NRA in projects such as the Tullamore bypass”, said Mr Martin.
Martin McWilliams, Managing Director of PT McWilliams said:
“This is out first joint venture with Graham and we are looking forward to completing this project which will be a major benefit for the town.’’
Pictured at the ceremony to mark the start of the project are left to right: Leo Martin, Director, Graham, Brian Cowan, Minister of finance, and martin McWilliams, Managing Director, PT McWilliams