John Wood Group sells built environment business for $1.9bn

John Wood Group has sold its Built Environment Consulting business to WSP for $1.9bn (£1.5bn). The Scottish engineering and consulting specialist announced in November that it was reviewing the future of the division. WSP, the global engineering services giant, has now signed an agreement to buy the business and expects to complete in September. Robin Watson, chief executive, said: “We are very pleased to have agreed this sale with WSP. This transaction will deliver significant value for our shareholders and marks a new chapter for John Wood Group. “It enables us to move onto our next strategic phase with the financial flexibility to accelerate our strategy to capture the growth opportunities ahead across both energy security and sustainability.” The group’s built environment division helps clients to address environmental risks, build sustainable infrastructure, increase climate resilience and improve mobility. It operates in the government, transport, energy, mining, water and industrial markets. The consideration implies an EV/EBITDA multiple of 16x based on its EBITDA for 2021. It is expected to incur transaction costs of around $50m and cash tax costs of around $60m. WSP president and chief executive Alexandre L’Heureux, said: “The addition of the Built Environment Consulting business will allow us to expand our ‘Earth and Environment’ leadership across our key markets and geographies. We share a common purpose of making the world a better place and our united forces will only further our expertise to create a more sustainable and resilient world.” To send feedback, e-mail piers.wehner@eg.co.uk or tweet @PiersWehner or @EGPropertyNews