Consulting and engineering firm Wood has added another chapter to the takeover saga that has been going on since last year.
Dar Al-Handasah Consultants Shair and Partners Holdings, also known as Sidara, has been courting the UK firm with different offers to sell up since April of last year.
After declining several offers, Wood finally relented and accepted a non-binding conditional proposal from Sidara in February 2025 for a possible offer of 35 pence in cash per Wood share to acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital of the company.
This offer is worth around £242m ($323m) and includes taking on Wood’s outstanding debt of approximately $1.1bn. Sidara would also inject $450m into the UK company in two tranches. The company’s board has recommended that shareholders accept the offer if it comes to pass.
However, several issues had to be cleared up before the takeover could take place. Namely, no offer can be made without Wood publicising its audited accounts for the financial year ended December 31, 2024. Since those results are still being audited, Wood extended the deadline for negotiations several times.
The first extension regarding negotiations with Sidara was made in March, with three more following each month. Since the audited results are not yet available, Wood extended the deadline once again.
Now, Sidara must make a firm offer for Wood or announce that it does not intend to make an offer by no later than 5 pm British time on August 25. This deadline can be extended further if the audited financials are not published by then.
