Wood Group is close to agreeing terms of a takeover by Dubai-based consultancy Sidara which has offered to inject new capital into the Aberdeen energy services company.
Sidara’s proposal of 35 pence per share in cash, valuing the company at about £242m, is backed by a possible $450 million of new funding which Wood is “minded to recommend” to shareholders.
It follows a series proposed offers from Sidara that culminated in a £1.56 billion proposal that was withdrawn last summer.
The Middle East company has confirmed that it has made significant progress with its due diligence on Wood and on the review of the points raised in the independent review by Deloitte into Wood’s governance which was announced in November.
Wood said work continues on a range of alternative refinancing options to provide the company with an appropriate and sustainable long-term capital structure.
“Having carefully considered the viability of these options together with its financial advisers, the board of Wood currently believes that the Possible Offer represents the better option for Wood’s shareholders, creditors and other stakeholders,” it said in a statement this morning.
On 24 February, Wood announced that it had received an approach from Dar Al-Handasah Consultants Shair and Partners Holdings (Sidara) in relation to a possible cash offer.
Our comment on the likely outcome of the talks
Wood later said it had delayed publishing its annual accounts to provide more time to consider an independent review of governance conducted by Deloitte.
In its statement today, Wood said the proposed combination of Wood and Sidara would create a leading global engineering consulting company with enhanced scale, capability and diversification.
It said that by bringing together Wood’s deep domain experience with Sidara’s specialist strengths in Energy & Materials, the combined business would be well-positioned to lead and grow in these attractive global markets.
Sidara’s long-term strategic commitment to the energy transition, combined with its complementary end markets and strong geographic reach – particularly in the US and Middle East – is expected to enhance Wood’s established market-leading position and create opportunities for sustainable, scalable growth.
“Sidara has a strong track record of its acquired businesses prospering within the group. Wood would continue to operate as a standalone, client-facing brand, maintaining its identity and trusted client relationships,” said Wood.
“This would ensure business continuity for existing clients while creating growth opportunities for the combined group and strengthening Wood’s commercial position.”
Sidara said it intends to support Wood in taking actions to retain and support employees to ensure business continuity. This includes a commitment to uphold Wood’s pension obligations, ensuring schemes are funded in line with governing documents and statutory requirements.
Background on Sidara
Sidara was founded in 1956 and has expanded over the last 69 years to become a privately-owned global partnership with 21,500 specialists, operating across 350 offices in 69 countries advising and supporting some of the world’s biggest and most complex design and engineering projects.
The group includes architects, engineers, consultants, designers and project managers. Today’s group of companies rebranded as Sidara in 2023; some of the industry’s most recognizable brands are proud members of the Sidara Group, including Dar, Perkins & Will and TYLin. Sidara is 100% owned by the working partners of the business.
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