UK-based infrastructure company Balfour Beatty has announced a five-year procurement deal with Hercules Sites Services, which will manage work on the awarded contracts for the upcoming Network Rail Control Period 7 (CP7).

The contract arrangement will allow Hercules to work on active railways for the first time, providing the corporation with additional revenue sources.

CP7 is a five-year period in which Network Rail will spend £44bn on the UK railways, running from 2024 to 2029.

As previously reported, the aims of the plan include increasing investment in combating climate change, improving train performance over present levels and making the railway even greener.

Hercules chief executive Brusk Korkmaz said: “We have previously provided personnel to deliver heavy civils and earthworks to pre-enable rail-based projects.

“This contract will see us recruit specialist rail labour on live track on behalf of a customer for the first time, opening up a wider range of opportunities for Hercules in the rail industry.”

This collaboration is also in line with the aims established in the CP7 strategic business plan, which states that the next control period will be focused on cross-industry collaboration.

Hercules further emphasised that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's decision to cancel the Manchester link last week had had no effect on its efforts on the HS2 project.

The consortium noted in a statement that work on the London-Birmingham link "continues to gain momentum".