UPDATE 1-Vinci buys UK builder Haymills in prepack deal

(adds administrator comments, background)

LONDON Aug 13 (Reuters) - French construction firm Vinci SA (SGEF.PA) has bought British builder Haymills Group in a "prepack" administration deal, administrator PricewaterhouseCoopers said on Thursday.

The privately-owned company was put up for sale after facing difficulties meeting its financial obligations and incurring losses from a Gibraltar subsidiary, PwC's Stephen Oldfield said.

Vinci's acquisition of a majority of Haymills saves 430 jobs, PwC said. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

A prepack administration is a fast-track tool used to sell a company ahead of an insolvency.

Vinci's acquisition of Haymills was a "prime example of when a prepack sale can be the best option", PwC's Oldfield said.

"In this case, as this is a contracting company, any attempt to sell this type of business after an administration appointment is fraught with legal and operational difficulties which would have likely caused the business to collapse," he said.

Haymills' last recorded annual sales were 182 million pounds ($302.4 million) with profits of just over 1 million pounds.

(Reporting by Tom Freke)

($1=.6018 Pound)