WS ATKINS: The boards of WS Atkins plc and SNC-Lavalin Group Inc of Canada announced on April 20 that they had agreed terms for SNC-Lavalin to acquire the entire issued share capital of Atkins. This values Atkins at £2∙1bn and represents a premium of 35% on the closing price of its shares on March 31.
Subject to approval by Atkins shareholders, who are being recommended to accept the offer by the board, the acquisition is expected to become effective during Quarter 3 of 2017. It would create ‘a C$12∙1bn global fully-integrated professional services and project management company’ with 53 000 employees, significantly improving SNC-Lavalin’s overall margins and enhancing its position in markets including infrastructure, rail and public transport.
‘By combining two highly-complementary businesses, we will increase our depth and breadth of services to position us as a premier partner to public and private-sector clients’, said SNC-Lavalin President & CEO Neil Bruce. ‘It also creates new revenue growth opportunities in key geographies by positioning us to capitalise on increased cross-selling and the opportunity to win and deliver major projects in new regions.’
