Canadian-headquartered global design firm Stantec has announced it has signed an agreement for the sale of its construction division, MWH Constructors, including its UK and US divisions to funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P
The divestiture of of the water and wastewater constructors, which also includes Slayden Constructors, Inc. , restores Stantec to its core consulting business.
Commenting on Stantec’s second quarter 2018 results in August this year, Stantec president and chief executive officer Gord Johnston said:
"Though we believe that our core Construction Services business is solid, several legacy projects continued to negatively impact results. We have placed a hold on hard-bid projects outside our area of expertise, we are winding down our exposure to the UK waste-to-energy market, and we continue to make positive progress on our strategic review."
MWH Constructors in the UK will return to its previous MWH Treatment brand. Subject to customary conditions, the sale is anticipated to close in the fourth quarter of 2018.
The divestiture concludes the strategic review of construction services Stantec announced in April 2018. The strategic review set out to determine an option that would optimize the value of MWH Constructors and provide the best prospects for employees, clients, and shareholders.
MWH Constructors joined Stantec through the MWH acquisition in 2016 - Stantec’s largest-ever acquisition of MWH Global, a 6,800-person engineering, consulting, and construction management firm.
Commenting on the sale, Gord Johnston said:
“MWH Constructors has growth opportunities in the United Kingdom and the United States, and we believe this divestiture will better allow them to invest in and pursue growth while continuing to serve their clients.”
Blair Lavoie, president of MWH Constructors and chief of global operations added:
“We are excited to join Oaktree’s construction portfolio focused on project delivery. This is a positive step in the evolution of our company, and we look forward to having a partner like Oaktree with strong financial resources and a desire to invest in our future as we continue to be the leading global project delivery company in the water sector. In the US, we will stay with our great brands of Slayden and MWH Constructors, and in the UK, we will return to MWH Treatment.”
MWH Constructors provides a full range of high-value design, start-to-finish preconstruction, construction, construction management, and start-up and commissioning services, primarily for the water and wastewater markets in the United States and the United Kingdom.
With the pending divestiture of MWH Constructors and the 2017 divestiture of Innovyze, Stantec said it will continue to focus on its core consulting services business globally. Stantec has announced eight strategic acquisitions so far in 2018.
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