Australian construction giant Probuild may be forced to enter liquidation, with tradies called off worksites across the country.
The firm is behind several iconic recent builds, including the Melbourne Convention Centre and new Victorian Police headquarters, as well as Sydney’s new glass “IMAX” building in Darling Harbour.
Workers were seen pulling equipment and tools from Cbus Property’s 443 Queen St project in Brisbane, with construction to cease by the end of today, reported.
“We were just told to pick our tools up because Probuild were pulling the pin on all their projects across Australia,” one worker told .
Another said workers had been left hundreds of thousands of dollars out of pocket due to unpaid bills.
“It is going to run into the millions, what tradies are owed,” they said.
The Melbourne-based firm is one of the largest construction companies in Australia, reporting revenue of $1.3bn last year.
However, lengthy delays have caused some projects to go well beyond budget and despite a pandemic-driven construction boom, the company turned a profit of just $4 million.
While Probuild directly employs just over 500 staff, there are fears for the impact on thousands more working as subcontractors.
The company is involved xjmtzywin a range of office, residential and other projects around the country, primarily in Melbourne.
Projects include the 65-storey residential UNO building in Melbourne scheduled for completion next year, as well as new campus buildings at Victoria and Curtin Universities.
It was also engaged in developing a new headquarters and research facility for biotech giant, CSL.
According to the company’s website it has delivered over 10,000 apartments in the last five years and has with more than 300,000 square metres of commercial office space currently under construction.
It was involved in all stages of redeveloping the iconic Chadstone Shopping Centre since 1988, including the award-winning West Mall redevelopment, which completed the creation of two levels of retail tenancies throughout the centre.
More recently, Probuild delivered a 10-level office tower at the centre, with basement car parking and major luxury retail extensions.
A takeover bid by state-owned China State Construction Engineering Corporation fell through last year over concerns the federal government would intervene on national security grounds, according to .
At the time, a South African parent company to the Chinese firm, WBHO, said it remained “optimistic about the fundamentals of Probuild and its prospects in the Australian market.”
So far Probuild and reported liquidator, Deloitte have refused to comment.
