Client Dumfries and Galloway Housing Partnership was left without a builder when R&D Construction collapsed late last year.

Since then the housing project has been hanging in limbo.

Under the new deal worth £15m Cruden will complete 150 homes over a two-year period and will bring the conclusion of almost 400 new houses in the regeneration programme.

DGHP chairman Billy Lockhart said he was delighted the deal had been done, meaning works could start “imminently”.

He said it had taken some time to agree the deal due to procurement regulations.