Remi DORVAL
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer,
Solétanche Bachy

With a turnover of more than 1.5 billion euros, representing an 18% increase on the previous financial year, the Solétanche Bachy group has confirmed the strength of its growth during 2008. this performance has turned 2008 into a second record year despite the initial effects of the economic crisis that are being felt particularly in Spain and in the Middle East.

The year has also seen a number of outstanding successes in the execution of ongoing projects most noteworthy being the new sewage collector in Bogota, Colombia, the second extension phase for the port of le Havre, completion of the vibroflotation works of the second "Palm tree" in Dubai, or the construction of a housing complex - the Vincom project - Hô-Chi-Minh City, a first for Vietnam.

These successes are due to the continuance of our strategy, based on a clearly defined approach and methods that have now become firmly established within the Group:
• continued improvement of the Group’s technical capabilities which fundamentally rely on a constant commitment to worldwide personnel training and recruitment of new employees who bring their skills and experience to our operations. The Research & Development effort that has led to the development of new processes such as «Geomix» clearly forms part of this aim that consists in offering our clients the best design and deployment solutions in order to enable them to complete their projects.
• the continued extension of our geographical coverage; in particular, 2008 saw a consolidation of our presence in Central Europe, the USA and the United Kingdom.
• the extension of our activities through an integrated approach to infrastructure projects whenever the proportion of ground works predominates. In this way, in 2008, the Group’s experience was enriched by new projects in the fields of port infrastructures, metros, car parks and sanitation systems.

It is thus bolstered by the excellent technical as well as commercial and financial results achieved during a highly successful 2008, and through the deployment of a strategy that has demonstrated its relevance, that Solétanche Bachy has begun 2009, in the context of a worldwide economic crisis.

The values that constitute the foundations of our Group – the technical expertise and quality of our employees, local footholds, the ability to seize every opportunity throughout the world – combined with the prospects of a new synergy offered by the creation of stronger links with the Freyssinet Group from the start of the year, enable us to view 2009 with confidence and the outlook for a future recovery with optimism.