More than 700 rail industry jobs have been saved after British company Amey swept in to buy up a wave of contracts previously owned by the collapsed outsourcer Carillion.

Amey Rail will now take on the contracts for work on projects in the East Midlands, London and the North West, safeguarding more than two thirds of the roughly 1,000 Carillion workers on Network Rail projects and potentially hundreds more involved in the supply chain.

Network Rail said Amey had bought a “significant number” of Carillion’s contracts, including work on some of its most complex projects such as the North West electrification programme and work related to Crossrail at Old Oak Common, but did not disclose financial details of the transactions.

Matthew Steele, commercial director at Network Rail, said the move ensured the delivery of several major rail projects, something which would be a relief to workers who have been worried about their future.

“We do recognise that this has been a very unsettling period for the employees of Carillion and would like to thank them for the continued commitment to the delivery of these projects,” Mr Steele said.

“We remain focused on the transfer of remaining projects and employees to new arrangements over the coming weeks and months.”