American engineering company Jacobs has agreed to buy British multinational company John Wood Group’s (JWG) nuclear business for approximately $300m (£250m).
Jacobs explained that it made the purchase in order to increase its credentials as a Tier-1 nuclear service provider and cited JWG’s ownership of the UK’s largest independent nuclear research facility as two critical reasons for the purchase.
Alongside this, the purchase will allow the company to expand its presence in the UK and further afield in mainland Europe and even Asia and adds to its $1.2bn nuclear power portfolio.
For JWG, according to the FT this sale allows the company to reduce its debt levels . JWG’s debt came from its own purchase of rival group Amec Foster Wheeler for £2.2bn in 2017, which left the company with a net debt of £2bn, over twice its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda).
