Dozens of construction vehicles sourced in the UK and abroad are helping Ukraine to rebuild its infrastructure damaged during conflict in the country.

These vehicles, which are carrying out work including construction of shelters for equipment, laying and clearing of roads and loading and unloading of supplies, were supplied by Finning UK and Ireland.

Finning has a long-standing relationship with the Ministry of Defence (MOD), having worked with it for over 20 years, previously providing generators as well as customised wheel loaders and excavators.

Following a contract award by Defence Equipment & Support on behalf of the International Fund for Ukraine, more than 80 construction vehicles, including bulldozers and earth excavators, are now in Ukraine supporting a variety of projects.

DE&S has been at the heart of procuring and equipment to the Ukraine since 2022, sourcing and delivering anything from battle tanks to body armour and medical kits.

Maj Gen Anna-Lee Reilly CB, Director of Strategic Capability, Engagement and Operations at DE&S, said:

“In a very short time span Finning was able to source all the required vehicles, helping us to provide a rapid response to the Ukrainians’ requirements as they begin the task of rebuilding.

“We’ve been impressed with the level of expert input and service from Finning, which had a real task with sourcing such a range of machines in a very short time. The company has applied their proven expertise and combined it with creativity to find a solution which delivers a huge benefit to Ukraine.”

Adam Smith, Head of Used Equipment at Finning, said:

“The most challenging aspect of this contract was fulfilling the requirement in such a short space of time. To achieve this, we pulled out all the stops.

“Over half of the machines were sourced from our own stock of used equipment here in the UK. However, we were able to meet the demands of the full machine requirement by sourcing equipment from Cat dealerships in the US, Norway, Spain, Germany, and France.

“We also had to move quickly to get the vehicles painted green and processed through our own workshops as a priority before starting deliveries. Throughout this time we were able to provide absolute reassurance for the MOD on the quality and performance of the machines.”

He added:

“We are very proud to be able to be able to support Ukraine and help the country as it starts to rebuild.”