The private security company G4S has said it will meet the full cost of deploying thousands of extra troops to the London Olympics after it failed to supply sufficient numbers of security guards.
G4S said it stands to lose up to €63m on its contract with the Games organisers, as a result.
Its chief executive Nick Buckles said the company accepted underestimating the task of supplying staff for the Olympics.
G4S had been contracted to supply over 10,000 personnel but Britain’s Defence Ministry now has to supply 3,500 additional troops to make up the shortfall.
Mr Buckles said the company would be facing a penalty payment "in the range" of €12-€24m as a result of the firm's failure to meet its commitments.
However he said that the bulk of the loss would come from paying the Ministry of Defence to supply 3,500 additional troops to make up the shortfall.
"We accept that we underestimated the task of supplying staff for the Olympics. We deeply regret that," Mr Buckles told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.
Despite having signed the initial contract in 2010, Mr Buckles said that he had only realised "eight or nine days ago" that there would be a shortfall in the numbers.
