Merger between UK and Canadian engineers clears final legal hurdles
WSP and Genivar have finalised their merger, creating an engineering-led consultant with revenues of £1.1bn and 14,500 employees.
Under the terms of the merger WSP shareholders received 435p for each share, valuing the share capital of WSP at £278m.
The combined firm, which will eventually be called WSP Genivar, is listed on the Toronto stock exchange, with current WSP chief executive Chris Cole given the role of executive chairman.
Pierre Shoiry and Alexandre L’Heureux, currently chief executive officer and chief financial officer of Genivar, will remain in these roles.
The merger was approved by WSP shareholders on 12 July and was sanctioned by the High Court on 31 July, effective from Tuesday this week. WSP’s listing on the London stock exchange was set to be cancelled at 8am on Thursday.
Cole said: “WSP and Genivar are stronger together and the combination results in a company with an extremely wide array of expertise, enabling us to pursue our joint growth strategy and broaden the range of opportunities for clients, employees and existing and potential partners.
“As people businesses we have a complementary culture and shared values and demonstrate the same entrepreneurial spirit and dedication, thriving on excellence, innovation and great working relationships.”
Paul Dollin, managing director of WSP in the UK added: “Genivar’s financial strength and desire for continued international growth makes them the ideal partner to support my aspirations to grow the UK business.
“The merger will provide a platform to enhance our world class skills and exploit new geographic opportunities, accelerating our existing strategy to significantly increase UK market share over coming years.
“Despite some commentators having written off the UK construction market I believe there remain opportunities for those companies willing to adapt to the changing market.”
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