VolkerWessels

Koninklijke VolkerWessels N.V.
TypePublic (Naamloze vennootschap)
VOLKERWESSELS
IndustryConstruction, civil engineering
Founded1854
HeadquartersAmersfoort, Netherlands
Key peopleJan de Ruiter (CEO), J.H.M. (Jan) Hommen (Chairman of the supervisory board)
RevenueIncrease €5.714 billion (2017)
Increase €191 million) (2017)
Increase €151 million (2017)
OwnerWessels family through Reggeborgh Holding B.V.
Number of employees
16,179 (2017)
Websitewww.volkerwessels.com

Koninklijke VolkerWessels N.V. is a major European construction services business with Dutch-based headquarters. It is owned by the Wessels Family through Reggeborgh Holding.

History

The company was founded by Adriaan Volker in Sliedrecht in 1854. It merged with Stevin Groep to form Volker Stevin in 1978 and with Kondor Wessels in 1997 to form Volker Wessels Stevin.

In 2002, the firm was rebranded as VolkerWessels. In 2010, in response to a drop in privately-financed construction projects, the company's UK-based operation made use of its parent company's maritime experience to pursue more opportunities in the marine infrastructure sector. The late 2010s was a period of growth for the company; turnover increased by 20 percent in 2019 alone. In November of that same year, the Dutch investment company Reggeborgh, which already held a 63.5 percent stake in VolkerWessels, offered to purchase all outstanding shares in the firm in exchange for £575 million, which resulted in the company being delisted from the Amsterdam Stock Exchange to become a private company.

In the early 2020s, the lengthy disruption caused by of the COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted VolkerWessels, which had furloughed much of its workforce for a time and had explicitly attributed the pandemic for a £6.4 million loss being recorded for 2020. On the pandemic, the company spoke out on the need to maintain sufficient cash reserved throughout crisis events, noting that it was insolvency, rather than losses, that would typically undo a business. In 2022, the company returned to profitable operations and publicly warned about the impact of rising prices for both material and labour on its operations.

During 2023, via two subsidiary companies, VolkerWessels UK became the first entity to be certified to the BS 99001 standard, signifying the company's consideration for social, economic, and sustainability factors in its undertakings. That same year, VolkerWessels was allegedly late paying its suppliers 25 percent of the time. During 2024, the company's profitability grew on the back of its activities in the civil sector, having secured particularly lucrative projects in both the infrastructure and entertainment subsectors. In 2025, the firm was able to increase its profitability despite a slowdown in the commercial sector due to the securing of several large contracts across the marine, water and highways sectors. In July of same year, it was announced that Van Elle, the largest ground engineering contractor in the UK, had agreed terms to acquire the concrete piling assets of VolkerGround Engineering.

Operations

The company is organised into the following divisions:

The company is the eponymous sponsor of the VolkerWessels Cycling Team.

Major projects

Major projects undertaken by the company include the Eastern Scheldt storm surge barrier completed in 1986, the Gateshead Millennium Bridge completed in 2001 and the Euroborg soccer stadium for FC Groningen in Groningen completed in 2006.

VolkerWessels has been a major supplier to Network Rail, being involved in schemes such as the Midland Rail Hub. The company is also involved in the construction of High Speed 2, being a member of a joint venture to deliver lot C1, which was due to be completed in 2031.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Annual Report 2017" (PDF). VolkerWessels. Retrieved 18 July 2026.
  2. ↑ "Organisatiestructuur - VolkerWessels". www.volkerwessels.com.
  3. 1 2 3 "Timeline Royal VolkerWessels - VolkerWessels". www.volkerwessels.com. Archived from the original on 6 October 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  4. ↑ "VolkerWessels UK set to focus on marine infrastructure". building.co.uk. 26 March 2010.
  5. ↑ Bingley, Lem (1 October 2020). "VolkerWessels records 20% turnover growth". constructionnews.co.uk.
  6. ↑ Prior, Grant (12 November 2019). "VolkerWessels to be taken private in buyout". constructionenquirer.com.
  7. ↑ Price, David (17 January 2022). "VolkerWessels blames £6m loss on problem jobs and COVID". constructionnews.co.uk.
  8. ↑ Price, David (24 September 2021). "Revealed: furlough claims made by the largest contractors in June". constructionnews.co.uk.
  9. ↑ Price, David (10 September 2020). "CN100: Cash piles up ahead of COVID-19 crunch". constructionnews.co.uk.
  10. ↑ Smulian, Mark (20 July 2022). "VolkerWessels warns of 'economic headwinds' despite return to profit". constructionnews.co.uk.
  11. ↑ Lorimer, Kerry (14 August 2025). "Morgan Sindall second construction firm to achieve quality standard". constructionnews.co.uk.
  12. ↑ Moore, Catherine (15 August 2023). "Major contractors admit they pay 20% of invoices late". constructionnews.co.uk.
  13. ↑ Lowe, Tom (3 August 2021). "Payment times for a third of firms now faster than government target". building.co.uk.
  14. ↑ Stein, Joshua (1 October 2024). "VolkerWessels boosts profit as civils work reaps rewards". constructionnews.co.uk.
  15. ↑ Morby, Aaron (1 October 2024). "VolkerWessels lifted by marine arm's return to profit". constructionenquirer.com.
  16. ↑ Stein, Joshua (27 August 2025). "VolkerWessels boosts profit as marine and water sectors boom". constructionnews.co.uk.
  17. ↑ "Van Elle and VolkerWessels get close". theconstructionindex.co.uk. 22 July 2025.
  18. ↑ "Our companies - VolkerWessels". www.volkerwessels.com.
  19. ↑ "VolkerWessels Cycling Team". UCI. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  20. ↑ "Deltawerken - Cooperation". www.deltawerken.com.
  21. ↑ "Gateshead Millennium Bridge (Newcastle upon Tyne/Gateshead, 2001)". Structurae.
  22. ↑ "10 million euro orders for Olympic Stadium in Berlin and Euroborg Stadium in Groningen". Imtech. 8 April 2004. Archived from the original on 28 December 2010.
  23. ↑ Weinfass, Ian (25 August 2025). "Network Rail's top contractors revealed". constructionnews.co.uk.
  24. ↑ "Four firms selected for £1.75bn Midlands Rail Hub alliance". constructionnews.co.uk. 28 August 2025.
  25. ↑ Horgan, Rob (26 April 2022). "Trio of Midlands railway stations to be built by VolkerFitzpatrick". constructionnews.co.uk.
  26. ↑ "HS2 contracts worth £6.6bn awarded by UK government". the Guardian. 17 July 2017. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
  27. ↑ Stein, Joshua (24 November 2021). "VolkerWessels profit boosted by HS2 go-ahead". constructionnews.co.uk.