WYG in talks with lenders as losses spiral to £22m

Aaron Morby 15 years ago
Share

Engineering consultant WYG is in talks to secure long term funding of the business after another tough six months of trading.

The firm suffered further pre-tax losses, including exceptional costs, of £22m in the six months to December 2010 on turnover slumped 27% to £84m.

Before exceptional costs WYG scraped in with a trading profit of £100,000.

WYG said it was in talks with its lenders to explore the options available to address long term funding requirements and would finalise a deal before 30 June 2011.

The consultant stressed it remained compliant with existing covenants and continued to forecast that its future borrowing requirements will be within the level of its overall banking facilities.

Paul Hamer, chief executive officer, said that the restructuring of the business, which saw 400 jobs axed in the last six months, was close to being completed.

He added that future growth would be delivered from plans to develop overseas work.

“After nearly two years of major restructuring, we now have an appropriate operational and support structure.

“The latter stages of this restructuring have been undertaken against a backdrop of profoundly difficult and uncertain market conditions in the UK, particularly in the public sector, and significant volumes of work have been cancelled, reduced or deferred.”

Following a full business review, the value of goodwill carried on the balance sheet was reduced by £12.1m.

The group incurred exceptional costs of £2.7m to cover redundancies and £3.1m in office closures.

He added: “The overseas markets in which we operate have remained relatively resilient.

“Following the restructuring, we have a more efficient globally organised business that is well placed to benefit from the opportunities in international markets.

“Our focus is now on growing our global revenues through key relationships and strategic partners.

“As part of this we are looking at options that may allow us to create a positive growth environment with focused investment in employee retention, key recruitment and non-organic expansion”, he added.

“Significant market challenges remain and we will continue to drive further efficiencies across the Group.”

The specialist consultancy, which employs around 1,800 people in over 40 countries, has also restructured into four key market segments, creating a more efficient global business that is better positioned to exploit international opportunities.

Part of WYG’s three-part strategy is to grow its international footprint and during the six months to 31 December 2010 it opened local entities in Syria, Croatia, Bosnia and South Africa, and its international order book increased by £12.6m to £89.2m.

Trading by new divisions

Buildings & Critical Infrastructure achieved revenue of £32.5m (2009: £53.2m) with an operating loss before exceptional and other items of £1.2m (2009: £0.5m profit).

Transport Solutions generated revenue of £8.0m (2009: £8.5m) with an operating profit before exceptional and other items of £0.9m (2009: £0.8m).

Energy, Sustainability & Environment contributed revenue of £12.1m (2009: £15.2m) with an operating loss before exceptional and other items of £1.4m (2009: £1.0m loss).

Risk & Assurance Services achieved revenue of £31.1m (2009: £38.3m) with an operating profit before exceptional and other items of £1.7m (2009: £3.3m).

Latest news

Mace Consult appoints ex-ISG chief exec Zoe Price

Former head of failed contractor becomes MD at newly independent consultancy business
11 hours ago

Dubai developer acquires £2.5bn Royal Docks site

Construction to start in 2027 on new neighbourhood containing 5,000 homes
13 hours ago

Severn Trent taps supply chain for £200m Minworth job

Midlands-to-South East canal water transfer link hits engagement stage
13 hours ago

Immigration raid finds illegal workers on Vistry site

17 men including Albanian, Georgian and Indian workers detained
14 hours ago

Derby Market Place scheme heads for planning in New Year

Vinci and Ion gear up to lodge long-awaited city centre revamp
14 hours ago

Client sentenced after worker found dead on London site

HSE launches synagogue site probe after police find body
14 hours ago

Mount Anvil JV secures approval for Isle of Dogs estate rebuild

Tower Hamlets backs Tiller Road Estate 400-home rebuild
3 days ago

Timber giant files administration notice

National Timber Group England lodges court notice while rescue options assessed
4 days ago

Landsec pushes back starts on four major housing schemes to 2027

Housing slump forces developer to slow £3.6bn resi pipeline
4 days ago

Network Rail launches property development company

Platform4 targets 40,000 new homes and 10 million sq ft of commercial space over the next decade
4 days ago

Glencar starts first major job at Atom Valley

Green materials centre kick-starts development at Rochdale site
4 days ago

Magazines pose as main contractors to pester subbies

Contractors and clients urged to stop handing over supply chain lists to publishers
4 days ago

Construction hangs on to growth as new orders rebound

New orders up nearly 10% as commercial and industrial work demand stirs
5 days ago

Kier’s new boss off to a flyer as order book hits £11.6bn

Contractor locks in 94% of annual revenue as Stuart Togwell takes charge
5 days ago

Sisk hires former Graham civils MD as new infrastructure boss

Leo Martin joins in New Year in COO role created after Farrans acquisition
5 days ago

BSR to break free of HSE in late January

Draft regulations lodged to create independent Building Safety Regulator with power to prosecute
5 days ago

Wylfa to be home of UK’s first small modular nuclear reactors

Construction will start on £2.5bn Anglesey site next year
5 days ago

Morgan Sindall starts £100m Manchester labs hub

Work starts on 217,000 sq ft Knowledge Quarter lab hub
5 days ago

Willmott Dixon and Milligan team up for Weymouth revival

Partnership to draw up masterplan shaping seaside town regeneration.
5 days ago

Ballymore and Sainsbury’s to build new neighbourhood

11-year construction programme scheduled to start in 2026 in west London
5 days ago

Construction employment sinks to 24-year low

Direct employees now falling faster than self-employed as costs bite
6 days ago

Galliford Try still stumped by legionella at £45m health centre

Contractor takes control of water system at building still empty nearly a year after completion
6 days ago

Three firms shortlisted for £205m A9 dualling job

Balfour Beatty, Kier and Wills Bros are in the running for fifth A9 job
6 days ago

Green light for Liverpool twin tower scheme

Site clearance to start early next year to pave way for 19 and 25-storey buildings
6 days ago

Taylor Wimpey urges Budget boost for homebuyers as sales stay flat

House builder urges stimulus to unlock first-time buyer demand as sales rate dips
6 days ago

MPs call for radical overhaul of infrastructure delivery

Cross-party MPs calls for Whitehall reset on how major projects are planed and delivered
6 days ago

OCU moves into district heating with Valmech buy

Sheffield mechanical specialist to lead new district heating platform
6 days ago

Costain takes Morgan Sindall’s spot on Eastern Highways deal

Firm steps into EHA4 just nine months after framework launch
7 days ago

HSE issues emergency guidance after Assent collapse

Higher-risk schemes must reapply to the regulator before work can restart
1 week ago

Knights Brown profit jumps as energy and coastal work surge

Turnover up 15% to £116m as firm gears up for AMP8 water boom
7 days ago