A BOLTON company specialising in tunnelling has changed hands.

Rotherham construction and mining group Amco Corporation has acquired the ongoing business and assets of Amey Donelon Ltd of Cranfield Road, Lostock.

Workers have been told it will remain under its existing management, based in the North-west, but not necessarily in the same premises.

Amey Donelon Ltd was formed in 1995 when Oxfordshire-based Amey, a household name through its motorway construction and major civil engineering contracts, acquired J F Donelon and Co Ltd as a going concern after it went into receivership.

J F Donelon and Co Ltd, established in Stockport in 1949, moved to Crown Lane, Horwich in 1988.

The company employed more than 150 at the time it hit trouble during "a period of difficult trading conditions."

At the moment there are about 40 workers, but the workforce can be swelled to up to 300 whenever there are enough orders in place.

An Amco Corporation spokesman said the business would now trade as Amco Donelon, a division of Amco Corporation's major subsidiary, Amalgamated Construction Company Ltd.

Mr Warren Hibbs, Managing Director of Amalgamated Construction, said: "Donelon has an established reputation, with considerable tunnelling and specialist civil engineering expertise and a successful trading record.

"The business complements Amco's existing portfolio and capabilities. It will broaden the group's skills base, strengthen its position in markets it already serves and enable us to offer new services to existing and prospective clients."

Mr Mark Turner, Divisional Director of Amey Donelon, said: "We are delighted to join Amco. Our clients and staff will benefit from the group's specialist construction activities."

He said there was a possibility that the decision on the firm's location would be taken within the next four to six months.

He added that the reason for the sale was that Amey Plc was withdrawing from its traditional contracting market.