The announcement was rushed and is premature

Bob Kiley Commissioner of Transport for London

The consortium had already been chosen as the preferred bidder for the Bakerloo, Central and Victoria lines contract.

"We are confident the selected preferred bidders will provide much needed cash and management expertise to deliver a Tube network which London demands and deserves," said LU chairman Derek Smith.

The chairmen of both WS Atkins and Balfour Beatty said they were delighted to be part of the consortium named as the preferred bidder.

The British government has set aside �13bn ($19bn; 20.6bn euros) for maintenance and renovation of mainly private sector assets over 15 years under the public-private partnership (PPP) scheme.

Under the terms of the PPP deal, the winning bidder will be required to maintain and improve the tube-line infrastructure.

Kiley criticism

But the news was criticised by Transport for London, who said both the preferred and losing bids to restore the tube would waste taxpayers' money.

"The announcement... was taken without meaningful consultation with Transport for London," said Mr Kiley.

"Proceeding with this public private partnership on such a basis will result in an extremely wasteful and inefficient use of the public's money."

Metronet must now engage in final negotiations with London Underground, with the contract expected to be completed in late 2001.

A spokeswoman from London Underground said the remaining contracts could also be signed around this time, with work to begin shortly afterwards.