ENERGY service giant Wood Group is to continue looking at future acquisitions after posting a near-50% jump in profits in the first half.
It said yesterday that revenue in the period rose 17% year-on-year to £1.7billion, while pre-tax profits soared 49% to £62million.
The figures come at the end of six months which saw the Aberdeen-based group reform into three divisions, Wood Group PSN, Engineering and Gas Turbine Services (GTS) following the sale of its Well Support division for £1.7billion and buying PSN for £606million in April.
Revenue from Well Support were included in the figures up to April and PSN was included from April.
Chief executive Allister Langlands said the integration of PSN into the business was going well and that the outlook for the rest of the year was looking good, with a 10%-plus growth per year throughout 2011 and 2012 predicted in global exploration and production spending by operators.
This week, the firm is to complete the move of its integrated management team into 500-strong offices in Justice Mill Lane.
Mr Langlands. said: “Wood Group PSN now has 24,000 people in the combined business and has seen a pretty active market in the US and North Sea generally.
“We have got the complete integrated management team up and running and we have moved the teams to new offices in Justice Mill Lane.
“We have got the three businesses pretty comfortable and we are continuing to look at organic growth and acquisition of bolt-on companies or those that take us into a new geography.”
Mr Langlands said the firm saw future growth in the Americas, Canada and Brazil plus Africa, the Caspian and Australia. Work in unconventional hydrocarbons – both oil sands in Canada, where it already has significant presence, and gas shale plays and coal bed methane in North America and Australia – were also areas to increase work.
Wood Group PSN, now the largest division, saw sales rise 33% to £788million, helped by the acquisition of the Aberdeen company.
It has increased the percentage of overseas business, with the North Sea accounting for 40% compared with 54% in 2010.
Engineering saw revenue grow 16% to £417million, split between strong upstream growth, through the US Mustang business with strength in Canadian oil sands, 40% of the division, and subsea and pipelines (through Wood Group Kenny), also about 40% of the business, with operations in Australia but also US shale, Angola and Malaysia.
Strong growth in 2011 is also expected from GTS, which grew revenue 29% in the first half to £290million.
As a result of “confidence in the longer-term outlook” the firm declared a 15% increase in its interim dividend. Its shares rose 4.6% to 542.5p.
Wood Group employs 4,500 in Aberdeen, 2,700 offshore, and more than 35,000 people across 50 countries.