On the last trading day before Christmas, Westminster Group PLC (LON:WSG) delivered a nice present to shareholders as the security firm moved another step closer to securing a lucrative long-term project in the Middle East.
Back in September, the AIM-quoted company said it had made “significant progress” with the opportunity after successful talks with the client and other administrative bodies.
Since then further “extensive” discussions have taken place to talk over the project in more detail, including the order of the roll-out and the customer’s growing requirements.
Westminster conceded that these talks had taken longer than it had expected but it seems to have been worth it.
Chairman Sir Tony Baldry and chief executive Peter Fowler have recently returned from the country concerned, with all but a few “minor commercial and contractual issues” having now been agreed.
Due to the increasing potential scope of the project and its complexity, Westminster will now undertake the project in phases, with the initial phase expected to be worth around €24mln a year to the company.
Should any further extensions or changes be made, that figure could rise as well.
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All of the necessary approvals from governmental departments have now been received, so all that is left is one final internal approval process which Westminster hopes to update investors on in January.
The group added that plans are in place to raise the required funds to support investment in this project as well as other potential new managed services contracts, details of which will be unveiled “in due course”.
Shares surged 65.3% to 15.5p early on Friday morning.