The winning partnership beat off rival bids from Balfour Beatty/Morgan Est and Costain/Laing O’Rourke/Soletanche to take the huge Victoria Underground Station upgrade.

The duo also beat off a similar line-up of bidders last year to take the £500m Tottenham Court Road Tube station upgrade.

Vinci/BAM Nuttall will begin the first phase of construction, a new ticket hall under Bressenden Place, in 2011.

The revamp, which aims to cut passenger congestion, will be completed by 2018.

The full upgrade job entails construction of a new North Ticket Hall, new entrances, expansion of the existing South Ticket Hall, new lifts and escalators and a new passageway to the Victoria Line platform.

Richard Parry, London Underground’s strategy and commercial director, said: “This will be a huge benefit to residents, commuters and tourists, and customers will no longer face being held up by the station having to shut for several minutes in the rush hour because it is too full.

“It will also be much quicker and easier for passengers to enter and exit Victoria Underground station as they won’t have to cross several busy roads.”

Project details