Revenues flat at Impregilo

Impregilo reported flat first half net sales of €1 billion (US$1.4 billion) after challenging conditions in the contractor's domestic Italian market and international markets kept figures broadly unchanged on last year.

The company said €782 million (US$1.1 billion) - 78% of total first half revenue - came from outside Italy.

It reported "significant commercial progress" in its construction sector operations in the US, Romania and Italy during the first six months of the year, but said uncertainty and instability in many international markets remained a critical factor.

It highlighted the political upheaval in Libya, where the group has a controlling stake in a local company. Impregilo has halted its production operations and said it does not expect to restart production in 2011.

Meanwhile, the economic situation in Italy also continued to present difficulties for a recovery in production.

"The picture has been further complicated by the new financial pressures that hit Italy towards the end of the first half and the beginning of the second half," the contractor said, adding that it had nevertheless secured a number of transport infrastructure projects during the first six months of the year, including a contract to construct the new Line 4 of Milan's subway.

However, Impregilo's long-running legal troubles relating to waste contracts in southern Italy continue to impact results and another half year has passed without the group being able to collect large amounts it is owed from the local and central government authorities involved, despite the fact that the disputed Acerra waste-to-energy plant in Campania is fully operational.