Johannesburg — DESPITE tough trading conditions in the construction sector, JSE-listed civil engineering and construction group Esorfranki posted a 79,6% increase in headline earnings per share to 41,3c for the six months ended August 31, benefiting from the Gautrain and road upgrades contracts.

CEO Bernie Krone said the group's alignment to the infrastructure sector was further evident in the civils and pipelines divisions. Civils secured three major contracts during the period : a R400m contract from the South African National Roads Agency for the upgrade of the R21 between the Rietfontein and Pomona interchanges; a R170m contract for a section of the N4 upgrade near Brits; and the township development at the Medupi power station. New contract wins for pipelines included three large-scale pipeline and associated works -- at Ngcebo, Mkwanazi and Nsezi - together worth more than R100m. Krone said pipelines were operating in a particularly vibrant market with a large number of projects out to tender, and delayed projects set to start soon.

He said he was confident of continued growth in the six months ahead, underpinned by a healthy order book and project pipeline. "Our remaining order book at the end of August stood at R1,2bn and we are optimistic that delayed and new projects will start to come on stream."

Krone said prospects in Africa continued to support a focus on cross-border work and that Esorfranki had not yet begun to fully exploit this opportunity due to high demand so far in SA.

Esorfranki's geotechnical operations - Esor Africa and Franki Africa - managed to increase margins to 18% despite suffering difficult trading conditions that saw revenue down slightly by 9% year on year.

Revenue rose 76% to R1,02bn, while earnings more than doubled to R235,6m.