But the company confirmed the construction arm could start growing again now the market is picking-up.

Results for the year to December 31 2013 show UK construction and the Canadian operation had a drop in operating profit to £44.4m from £72.4m last time on turnover down to £1,059m from £1,281m.

Carillion has been slimming down the UK construction division since 2010.

That continued in 2013 with a fall in UK turnover to £0.8bn from £0.9bn previously.

The process is now complete and Carillion said: “We now believe rescaling is complete and that our revenue run-rate in UK construction had stabilised by the year end and now has the potential for modest growth in the second half of 2014”

Group turnover fell to £4.1bn for the year from £4.4bn as pre-tax profits dropped to £110.6m from £164.8m as lower than expected workloads from the Green Deal continued to have an impact.

Chairman Philip Rogerson said: “In 2013, Carillion has continued to respond decisively to challenging market conditions, including completing the rescaling of its UK construction activities and the restructuring of its energy services business, which are now aligned in size to their respective markets, while continuing to develop and strengthen its positions in new and existing markets that offer good opportunities for growth.

“Overall, we expect market conditions to remain challenging in 2014, but with a strong order book, good revenue visibility and substantial pipeline of contract opportunities the Group is now well positioned for the future.”