South African construction company liquidated

The High Court has granted an order placing construction giant Murray & Roberts Holdings under provisional liquidation.

This comes after one of the company’s creditors applied for the final, alternatively provisional, winding-up of the company in August 2025.

On Monday, 8 September, the court granted this order and placed Murray & Roberts Holdings under provisional liquidation.

In terms of this liquidation order, the matter will return to court on 17 October 2025, at which time the creditor will seek a final winding-up order.

Founded in 1902, Murray & Roberts is one of South Africa’s oldest companies and has been pivotal in building the country’s mining infrastructure over the past century.

However, the company ran into trouble in the decade following South Africa’s 2010 construction boom, as new projects dried up and its order book plunged in value.

These issues came to a head in November 2024, when Murray & Roberts announced it would voluntarily suspend trading in its shares.

At the same time, the company announced that one of its divisions, Murray & Roberts Limited, would be placed in business rescue.

Murray & Roberts Limited’s business rescue process remains on track, despite its holding company’s provisional liquidation.

In a press statement released on Tuesday, 9 September, Murray & Roberts Limited emphasised that it and Murray & Roberts Holdings are separate and distinct legal entities. 

Therefore, the liquidation of Murray & Roberts Holdings has no impact on Murray & Roberts Limited’s ongoing business rescue proceedings.

The company said its business rescue process remains firmly on track, under the supervision of its duly appointed Business Rescue Practitioners (BRPs).

Crucially, the differential transaction under the company’s adopted business rescue plan continues unaffected. 

This transaction provides for the acquisition of Murray & Roberts Limited’s subsidiary mining interests, including its cementation businesses in Africa and the Americas.

“These subsidiaries remain operational and are conducting business in the normal course,” the company said.

Murray & Roberts Limited’s BRPs also reiterated their confidence that the adopted business rescue plan represents the most sustainable and viable path forward. 

Its successful implementation is expected to protect around 2,800 jobs within the underlying businesses, with a particular emphasis on protecting South African jobs in Cementation Africa.

“Beyond business stability, the plan plays a critical role in safeguarding livelihoods and retaining essential expertise across the mining and infrastructure sectors,” the company said.