IN Brief:
- Orange UK Holdings has acquired Southbay Civil Engineering from founding shareholders Gordon and Gill Green.
- The specialist contractor undertakes quay wall, jetty, marine piling, sea wall and flood defence projects.
- Managing director Paul Stephenson and operations director Antony Ballantyne will remain in charge of the business.
Southbay Civil Engineering has been acquired by Orange UK Holdings, placing the Gateshead-based marine construction specialist under new ownership while retaining the management team responsible for its existing port, coastal and heavy civil engineering operations.
The investment group, led by entrepreneur Simon Orange, has purchased Southbay from founding shareholders Gordon and Gill Green. The contractor recorded turnover exceeding £40 million in its latest financial year, although the purchase price and detailed financial terms have not been disclosed.
Managing director Paul Stephenson and operations director Antony Ballantyne will continue to lead the business. Orange UK Holdings intends to support expansion in the UK and international marine infrastructure markets, with Southbay retaining its specialist civil engineering operations.
Founded in 2001, Southbay undertakes construction and design-and-build work involving quay walls, jetties, marine piling, sea walls, flood defences and associated structures. Its customers have included the Port of Tyne and other port and marine infrastructure operators.
The acquisition follows Orange UK Holdings’ purchase of structural steelwork contractor William Hare in June 2025. Southbay adds a different engineering discipline to the group’s interests, although no combined contracting structure or operational integration programme has been announced.
Marine civil engineering projects involve construction constraints arising from tidal conditions, access to working ports, variable ground conditions and the deterioration of structures exposed to seawater. The delivery methods can differ substantially between quay reconstruction, jetty renewal and repair of coastal protection assets.
Quay walls must retain land or fill while resisting actions associated with ground and water pressures, vessel movements and operational loading. Their construction can involve sheet piles, tubular piles, anchors, reinforced concrete and associated drainage or protection arrangements, selected according to the site’s engineering requirements.
Jetties often transfer loads through piles into the underlying ground, with the deck supporting vehicles, equipment, pedestrians or mooring operations. The condition of the piles and their connections to the deck affects the structural performance of the complete installation.
Southbay’s North Shields Fish Quay Protection Jetty renewal demonstrates its experience of delivering major reconstruction within a restricted marine environment. The original jetty, dating from 1895, had deteriorated and required replacement foundations and a new reinforced concrete deck.
The condition of the existing structure prevented heavy construction machinery from being supported directly on its original deck. Southbay introduced temporary steel grillage to accommodate an 80-tonne crawler crane, creating a working arrangement that allowed piling and reconstruction to proceed.
Engineers installed tubular bearing piles measuring approximately 23 metres in length, using temporary guides and a combination of vibratory and impact driving methods. The pile installation was followed by reinforcement and in-situ concrete pours to form the replacement deck.
The completed jetty incorporated precast concrete edge components, new fendering, mooring bollards and services. A wave screen was also constructed using precast concrete panels positioned between piles, providing protection to vessels moored in the adjacent waterway.
The construction sequence required the temporary support arrangement to accommodate changing conditions as new elements were installed. Working beside an operational fish quay also constrained material deliveries, access for machinery and the timing of activities close to vessel movements.
The project illustrates the relationship between temporary works and permanent marine structures. A contractor cannot necessarily use an existing damaged jetty to support the equipment required for its replacement, making an engineered alternative support system necessary before the permanent works can proceed.
Southbay has also completed repairs to the North and South Shields piers following damage caused by Storm Babet in October 2023. The works included reconstruction and reinstatement of parapet walls, coping stones, handrails, masonry and affected lighthouse infrastructure.
The pier repairs required work in an exposed coastal environment while port activities continued nearby. Deteriorated and storm-damaged components had to be removed, repaired or replaced while maintaining appropriate working arrangements around the existing structures.
The North and South Shields project won the medium-sized project category at the 2026 Institution of Civil Engineers North East Robert Stephenson Awards. Southbay’s Redcar Bulk Terminal Upgrade was also highly commended in the large project category.
The contractor’s work extends beyond the North East of England. Its portfolio includes projects in port and harbour environments across the UK, while the company has also secured its first international marine infrastructure project in the Falkland Islands.
These projects involve different combinations of structural construction, piling, concrete works and maritime logistics. Southbay maintains specialist capability in temporary works, marine access and the coordination of heavy construction activity around existing infrastructure.
Under the new ownership arrangement, Stephenson and Ballantyne will continue overseeing the company’s existing contracts and workforce. The acquisition has been presented as a means of providing additional support for growth rather than a change to Southbay’s principal engineering activities.
The transaction was advised by RG Corporate Finance on behalf of the selling shareholders, with legal advice from Beyond Corporate. Orange UK Holdings was advised by Mills & Reeve, while Saffery undertook financial due diligence.
Southbay’s most recent turnover provides an indication of its operating scale but is not the consideration paid by the purchaser. Neither party has disclosed a transaction price, and no new construction contract awards have been attributed directly to the change in ownership.
The acquisition places an established marine engineering business within Orange UK Holdings’ construction investment portfolio. Southbay will continue delivering quay, jetty, port and coastal infrastructure work under its existing leadership while pursuing further domestic and international opportunities.
