Sir Robert McAlpine’s massive order for the new low carbon steelworks in South Wales shot the firm to the top of January’s contracts league.

McAlpine’s construction management deal will see it run main civil, structural and building works required for the £1.25bn investment in building a new electric arc furnace-based steel production facility for Tata at its Port Talbot works.

The deal also catapulted the firm from 13th to third in the contractor rankings for most work secured over the last 12 months.

According to data compiled by Barbour ABI, the value of projects secured by the leading 50 contractors soared to £4.55bn in January from a December low of £2.9bn. The number of awards also recovered to 133 from 106.

Morgan Sindall remains the front-runner for accumulated work wins over the last 12 months, chased by Kier and now McAlpine.