UK consulting and engineering firm Wood has extended the deadline for discussions over a possible takeover by Dubai-based company Sidara.
Last month, Wood confirmed reports that Dar Al-Handasah Consultants Shair and Partners, also known as Sidara, has made an approach for a possible offer for the entire issued and to be issued share capital of the company.
At the time, the company did not disclose any terms of a potential offer but Sidara had to make an offer for the company by March 24 or state that it would not be making any offer.
Wood subsequently received a non-binding, conditional proposal from Sidara related to a possible cash offer for the company. Following this, the UK firm provided Sidara with access to due diligence information and entered into discussions with Sidara.
Discussions are continuing and Wood has extended the date by which Sidara is required to announce a firm intention to make an offer for Wood. Such an announcement must now be made by April 17. Under certain conditions, the deadline can be extended further.
Wood has informed its shareholders that they were not required to take any action regarding the possible offer. The company again repeated that there could be no certainty that an offer would be made, nor as to the terms on which it will be made.
Sidara sent four takeover bids to Wood in 2024. The fourth bid, which was at the time described as “final”, was sent to the UK firm in late May 2024. The cash offer of 230 pence per Wood share valued the company at around £1.58bn (just over $2bn).
The first offer from the Dubai-based firm was for 205 per share and was sent on April 30, 2024. The following offer was a 3.4% improvement on the first while the third was a 3.8% improvement on the previous one.
Wood believed that none of the offers were good enough and refused all four, stating that they significantly undervalued the company and its prospects.
Before Sidara started making offers, US-listed private equity group Apollo offered to buy Wood five times, with the largest valuing the company at about $2.1bn. The US firm eventually withdrew from the acquisition in May 2023.
