Profits at London fire engine firm AssetCo rocket

The Mayor's £430 million annual firefighting budget may be in deficit but the firm that supplies the capital's fire engines is reporting glowing profits.

AssetCo, the outsourcing company that has been supplying and maintaining London's fire fleet since 2001, today reported a 25% leap in profits and dividends.

AssetCo won the 20-year contract to support the London Fire and Rescue Service when it was part of Lattice, the old British Gas services business. It was spun out in 2002, went through a management buyout in 2005 by its current Irish fleet management specialists and reversed on to the stock market two years ago.

It now maintains London's 220 fire engines and an additional 300 vehicles for the Fire Service's 6000 firefighters operating out of the capital's 112 fire stations.

The fire engines coming in to the service are Mercedes-built although they are assembled in the UK at a total cost of around £225,000 for the typical appliance up to £500,000 for the more sophisticated rescue vehicles.

Chief executive John Shannon said AssetCo has tightened its own practices in the face of tighter public spending budgets. "As we enter a period of unprecedented public sector fiscal pressure, the expansion and extension of our support services continue to position this business for the long term," he said.

In the year to the end of March pre-tax profits rose to £11 million on revenues of £79 million. The dividend is up from 1p to 1.25p.