Balfour Beatty has reclaimed top spot in the monthly contracts league, after securing £852m of work across four projects in January.
The contractor’s return to number one was driven by its role on the £833m Net Zero Teesside power station, where it is delivering major onshore works as construction partner to Technip Energies. The result marks a notable comeback for the firm after a lengthy absence from the summit of the monthly rankings.
Bowmer & Kirklandfinished second in January, landing nine contracts with a combined value of £766.2m, according to data compiled by Barbour ABI. Its strongest win was the £274m main contract for Newcastle University’s Castle Leazes student accommodation redevelopment. The private builder is also lined up as preferred contractor for the proposed TV and film studio at Sunderland’s former Crown Works shipyard, although funding for that scheme has yet to be fully confirmed.
Multiplex Europe took third place with a single £250m project, while Robertson ranked fourth after securing six contracts worth £176m. Bovis completed the top five, winning two schemes valued at £168.9m.
Elsewhere in the January top 10, Amey (£152m), McAleer & Rushe (£132.8m), Bennett Construction (£125m), Kier (£121.5m) and Costain (£109.5m) rounded out the league table.
Top 10 – Work won in January
See interactive contractor rankings for full breakdowns
Across the wider market, the top 50 contractors kicked off 2026 strongly, securing £4.58bn of work from just 112 projects. The total narrowly exceeded December’s £4.52bn year-end figure, pointing to sustained momentum in awards, largely driven by a small number of high-value schemes.
In the rolling 12-month rankings to January, Strabag held on to first place with £3.01bn of work secured from just two contracts, underpinned by its £3bn Haweswater Aqueduct Resilience Programme.
Mace followed in second place with £2.9bn across 18 projects, while Bowmer & Kirkland ranked third on £2.5bn from 63 contract wins. Balfour Beatty placed fourth with £2.03bn, narrowly ahead of McLaren, which secured £2.01bn from 33 projects.