Multiplex won’t see profit from Wembley project

The Australian construction group building London’s new Wembley Stadium has admitted it will not make a profit on the project. Multiplex has seen the costs of the stadium spiral following a dispute with a steel supplier last year. It signed a £326.5million contract to build the stadium five years ago. At the time, construction industry rivals suggested that the fixed-price contract was too low and the company would have to fight hard with subcontractors to make a profit. The cost of the entire project, including knocking down the old stadium, has since risen to £757million, making it the most expensive sports venue ever built. Multiplex had been forecasting a profit of £28million from the construction of Wembley and another of its UK contracts, but yesterday admitted it now expects merely to break even.