Biffa&#39s turnover soars by 24.5%

With underlying growth in the UK running at about 11%, Biffa's profit before tax was up 59.7% to 73 million.

Biffa managing director Martin Bettington said that the substantial increase in turnover reflected the purchase of UK Waste, for which Severn Trent paid 380 million in June 2000. It subsequently merged the former WMI subsidiary with Biffa.

Some of the benefits of that acquisition were received in the last financial year, but it has still greatly affected this year's results, Mr Bettington said.

He added: “By far the vast majority of the increase has come from UK Waste – we had six months of it last year, 12 months of it this year.”

This factor meant that Biffa would be unlikely to experience such leaps in turnover in next year's results.

Severn Trent chairman David Arculus said: “This has been another year of progress for the group with satisfactory results overall. There is a growing recognition of our position as a leading environmental services business in the UK.”

Shell contract
Biffa was recently awarded a new five-year deal with Shell, worth 12.5million, to become the oil company’s principal waste contractor in the UK.

The contract will include collection of general dry waste from 630 Shell retail forecourts, collection of office waste from distribution terminals and provision of tankers for collection and treatment of liquid waste from interceptor tanks.

It will also involve waste management at Shell's Stanlow and Eastham oil refineries in north west England.

Biffa business manager Oonagh Kavanagh said: “This is perhaps the largest contract of its kind and is a reflection of Biffa's nationwide presence and range of services, which make it one of only a few waste companies with the size and scope to match the coverage of one of the UK's leading petrochemical manufacturers and retailers.”