Wood boss to retire from the role after seven years

UK oilfield services provider Wood Plc has revealed that its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Robin Watson, is retiring from the role after seven years. The company is now beginning the process to appoint his successor.

Meanwhile, Robin Watson will remain in his role until the successful candidate is in place.

Watson was appointed Chief Executive in January 2016, having previously joined the board in January 2013 as CEO of Wood’s PSN division. He also served as Chief Operating Officer.

In a statement on Wednesday, Wood said the company has transformed into a leader in consulting and engineering across the global energy market under his leadership.

Watson said: “2022 marks my tenth year on the Wood board and my seventh as Chief Executive. When I think back to the business I joined, it was largely focused on the North Sea and Gulf of Mexico and was almost entirely an upstream oilfield services business.

“I reflect with pride on the business we have now and the opportunities we continue to unlock in some very exciting and relevant energy markets: carbon capture, hydrogen, bio-refining, minerals processing, solar and wind energy – all alongside our well-established conventional energy business, helping our clients on their own transition journeys.

“As such, I have shared with the board that I consider the sale of our Built Environment business as marking the start of the next strategic phase for Wood and an appropriate time for me to step down as Chief Executive.”

Also on Wednesday, the company announced its full-year results for 2021, revealing a 15.4 per cent decrease in revenues when compared to 2020. The company’s net loss narrowed to $136 million from $228 million in 2020.

The company’s net debt at the end of the year totalled $1.4 billion, reflecting the negative free cash flow in the year.

Looking ahead, Wood expects higher revenue across its business supported by the growth in the order book, with revenue in the order book for 2022 of $4.7 billion (up 6 per cent on the comparable figure last year).

In related news, the company has recently secured a contract with Woodside Energy to implement a combined production management system (PMS) and virtual metering system (VMS) at the Sangomar FPSO control room and Woodside’s onshore offices in Senegal and Perth.