Salini Impregilo’s engineering excellence in the construction of Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center in Athens recognized by leading trade publication Engineering News-Record (ENR)

NEW YORK, U.S.A., 19-Oct-2016 — /EuropaWire/ — Salini Impregilo S.p.A. received in New York an award from leading trade publication Engineering News-Record (ENR) for the construction of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center in Athens, Greece, the latest recognition of its engineering excellence that it plans to deploy in an expansion drive in the United States.

Salini Impregilo, a global leader in infrastructure, especially in the water segment of the industry, sees enormous opportunity in a country where the urgent need to rebuild roads, bridges, airports and other crucial infrastructure has become a topic of the U.S. presidential election campaign.

“This is currently one of the most dynamic markets and we are very well-positioned,” said Chief Executive Pietro Salini, who took part in “Trends from the Top – Global CEOs Share their World View and Key Strategic Moves”, a panel discussion at the “Global Construction Summit” organized by ENR in tandem with the “2016 Global Best Projects Awards” ceremony where the cultural center was celebrated.

Salini Impregilo recently merged its U.S. subsidiary S.A. Healy Co., a tunnel and heavy construction contractor, with The Lane Construction Corp., the leading U.S. highway builder and asphalt maker that it acquired earlier this year. By combining their forces, Salini Impregilo is aiming for revenue growth in the double digits in the United States.

“We are in the best possible position to achieve a winning growth strategy in the United States,” said Salini. “The United States now represents 23% of our turnover, the continuation of our growth trajectory and a milestone of our cash flow driven strategy. Revenues generated by Lane are expected to grow in the double digits for this year”. For the remainder of the year, Lane will participate in 10 public tenders, for a total value for Lane share up to $2 billion.

Infrastructure is such an important issue that both candidates in the U.S. presidential election have pledged massive investments in it.

Hillary Clinton of the Democratic Party has proposed investing $275 billion over five years, with a further $225 billion in loans. Republican Party’s Donald Trump has announced an even bigger amount: $1 trillion over the same period. Late last year, Congress approved earmarking $305 billion over five years to fund work on bridges, roads and railways.

At the summit, Salini Impregilo was in the company of some of the biggest U.S. engineering and construction companies, including Bechtel Corp., Fluor Corp. and AECOM.

The award received by Salini Impregilo was for the innovative construction of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, designed by Renzo Piano, Italy’s star architect whose firm was also celebrated at the ceremony along with Terna S.A., the joint-venture partner.

Built on time and on budget, the centre is the new home of Greece’s national opera and library. One of Europe’s biggest structures dedicated to arts and culture, it has already received a “Platinum” certification, the highest rating from Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), for the materials chosen for its construction as well as the solar-paneled roof that gives it energy self-sufficiency.

The centre was one of 23 projects from 15 countries to be awarded at the ceremony.

The award was the latest recognition by ENR, which recently ranked Salini Impregilo as the global leader in the water segment of the infrastructure sector for the fourth year in a row and placed it among the 25 leading international contractors.

Contacts

Corporate Identity and Communication
Luigi Vianello, Head of Corporate Identity and Communication
Tel. +39 06 6776 26 964
Tel. +39 02 444 22 171
Email: media@salini-impregilo.com

SOURCE: Salini Impregilo S.p.A.