Huge Scottish engineering firm receives £242m takeover offer from UAE group
Aberdeen-headquartered Wood Group said Sidara – a privately held network of engineering and design companies run from the United Arab Emirates – has now put forward a non-binding conditional offer of 35p per share to buy Wood.
The offer, which would also include a potential 450 million dollar (£342 million) cash injection into Wood, would value the company at around £242 million.
It comes almost a year after talks around a previous £1.56 billion takeover approach from Sidara collapsed.
READ MORE:
However, the firm's share value has tumbled in the months since, particularly after recent updates highlighted potential governance failings and need for Wood to restate its accounts.
The Scottish firm's bosses said they would 'be minded to recommend' the latest takeover deal.
Wood said it has continued to assess other potential refinancing options alongside holding talks with Sidara regarding the potential takeover.
In February, Wood confirmed it had restarted takeover talks with its UAE-based rival, before extending discussions last month.
On Monday, the company said: 'The board of Wood believes that the company needs to have a more sustainable capital structure, and this requires substantial new capital in order to diversify Wood's financing sources and reduce its indebtedness over time.
'Work continues on a range of alternative refinancing options.
'However, 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.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNBC
3 hours ago
- CNBC
Delta Air assures US lawmakers it will not personalize fares using AI
Delta Air Lines said on Friday it will not use artificial intelligence to set personalized ticket prices for passengers after facing sharp criticism from U.S. lawmakers and broad public concern. Last week, Democratic Senators Ruben Gallego, Mark Warner and Richard Blumenthal said they believed the Atlanta-based airline would use AI to set individual prices, which would "likely mean fare price increases up to each individual consumer's personal 'pain point.'" Delta said it has not used AI to set personalized prices but previously said it plans to deploy AI-based revenue management technology across 20% of its domestic network by the end of 2025 in partnership with Fetcherr, an AI pricing company. "There is no fare product Delta has ever used, is testing or plans to use that targets customers with individualized prices based on personal data," Delta told the senators in a letter on Friday, seen by Reuters. "Our ticket pricing never takes into account personal data." Senators praised Delta's commitment not to use AI for personal pricing but expressed many questions and want more details about what data Delta is collecting to set prices. "Delta is telling their investors one thing, and then turning around and telling the public another," Gallego said. "If Delta is in fact using aggregated instead of individualized data, that is welcome news." Delta declined comment on Gallego's statement. The senators cited a comment in December by Delta President Glen Hauenstein that the carrier's AI price-setting technology is capable of setting fares based on a prediction of "the amount people are willing to pay for the premium products related to the base fares." Last week, American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said using AI to set ticket prices could hurt consumer trust. "This is not about bait and switch. This is not about tricking," Isom said on an earnings call, adding "talk about using AI in that way, I don't think it's appropriate. And certainly from American, it's not something we will do." Democratic lawmakers Greg Casar and Rashida Tlaib last week introduced legislation to bar companies from using AI to set prices or wages based on Americans' personal data and would specifically ban airlines raising individual prices after seeing a search for a family obituary. They cited a Federal Trade Commission staff report in January that found "retailers frequently use people's personal information to set targeted, tailored prices for goods and services -- from a person's location and demographics, down to their mouse movements on a webpage." The FTC cited a hypothetical example of a consumer profiled as a new parent who could intentionally be shown higher-priced baby thermometers and collect behavioral details to forecast a customer's state of mind. Delta said airlines have used dynamic pricing for more than three decades, in which pricing fluctuates based on a variety of factors like overall customer demand, fuel prices and competition, but not a specific consumer's personal information. "Given the tens of millions of fares and hundreds of thousands of routes for sale at any given time, the use of new technology like AI promises to streamline the process by which we analyze existing data and the speed and scale at which we can respond to changing market dynamics," Delta's letter said.
NBC News
4 hours ago
- NBC News
Delta Air Lines assures U.S. lawmakers it will not personalize fares using AI
WASHINGTON - Delta Air Lines said on Friday it will not use artificial intelligence to set personalized ticket prices for passengers after facing sharp criticism from U.S. lawmakers and broad public concern. Last week, Democratic Senators Ruben Gallego, Mark Warner and Richard Blumenthal said they believed the Atlanta-based airline would use AI to set individual prices, which would 'likely mean fare price increases up to each individual consumer's personal 'pain point.'' Delta said it has not used AI to set personalized prices but previously said it plans to deploy AI-based revenue management technology across 20% of its domestic network by the end of 2025 in partnership with Fetcherr, an AI pricing company. 'There is no fare product Delta has ever used, is testing or plans to use that targets customers with individualized prices based on personal data,' Delta told the senators in a letter on Friday, seen by Reuters. 'Our ticket pricing never takes into account personal data.' Senators praised Delta's commitment not to use AI for personal pricing but expressed many questions and want more details about what data Delta is collecting to set prices. 'Delta is telling their investors one thing, and then turning around and telling the public another,' Gallego said. 'If Delta is in fact using aggregated instead of individualized data, that is welcome news.' Delta declined comment on Gallego's statement. The senators cited a comment in December by Delta President Glen Hauenstein that the carrier's AI price-setting technology is capable of setting fares based on a prediction of 'the amount people are willing to pay for the premium products related to the base fares.' Last week, American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said using AI to set ticket prices could hurt consumer trust. 'This is not about bait and switch. This is not about tricking,' Isom said on an earnings call, adding 'talk about using AI in that way, I don't think it's appropriate. And certainly from American, it's not something we will do.' Democratic lawmakers Greg Casar and Rashida Tlaib last week introduced legislation to bar companies from using AI to set prices or wages based on Americans' personal data and would specifically ban airlines raising individual prices after seeing a search for a family obituary. They cited a Federal Trade Commission staff report in January that found 'retailers frequently use people's personal information to set targeted, tailored prices for goods and services -- from a person's location and demographics, down to their mouse movements on a webpage.' The FTC cited a hypothetical example of a consumer profiled as a new parent who could intentionally be shown higher-priced baby thermometers and collect behavioral details to forecast a customer's state of mind. Delta said airlines have used dynamic pricing for more than three decades, in which pricing fluctuates based on a variety of factors like overall customer demand, fuel prices and competition, but not a specific consumer's personal information. 'Given the tens of millions of fares and hundreds of thousands of routes for sale at any given time, the use of new technology like AI promises to streamline the process by which we analyze existing data and the speed and scale at which we can respond to changing market dynamics,' Delta's letter said.
USA Today
6 hours ago
- USA Today
Ghosts of retailers' past: See what dead stores Spirit Halloween is reviving
Shoppers may find it spooky when they see their favorite Joann Fabrics, Big Lots or Forever 21 store is now a Spirit Halloween. According to Spirit Halloween's website, the Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey-headquartered company has "more than 1,500 seasonal locations in strip centers and malls across North America." Hundreds of these incoming stores will occupy spaces previously used by retailers that have since gone bankrupt, including Big Lots, Forever 21, Joann Fabrics, Party City, Circuit City, K-Mart and Rite Aid. Spirit's stores open at the end of the summer, while its online store is available year-round, according to the company. USA TODAY contacted Spirit Halloween on Saturday, Aug. 2, but has not received a response. Here are the bankrupt retailers whose spaces are being revived by Spirit Halloween. What bankrupt retailers will have spaces revived by Spirit Halloween? According to Spirit Halloween's location map, which shows incoming stores slated to open either in August or beyond, these are some notable bankrupt companies that will have their former spaces occupied by "the largest Halloween retailer in the country." How to check for upcoming Spirit Halloween locations Those looking to check whether a Spirit Halloween is opening in their area can visit the retailer's map, enter their city or postal code, and see where the nearest location is. The company announced in June that it is seeking 50,000 seasonal employees to support more than 1,500 retail locations it expects to open this year. Contributing: Mike Snider and Gabe Hauari, USA TODAY
