REG - Harland & Wolff - UKEF EDG Facility Update and Board Changes

Harland & Wolff groupAnnouncement

19/07/2024 13:15

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
http://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20240719:nRSS1025Xa&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 1025X  Harland & Wolff Group Holdings PLC  19 July 2024

This announcement contains inside information

19 July 2024

 

Harland & Wolff Group Holdings plc

("Harland & Wolff" or the "Company")

UK Export Finance EDG Facility Update and Board Changes

Harland & Wolff Group Holdings plc (AIM: HARL), the UK quoted company
focused on strategic infrastructure projects and physical asset lifecycle
management, provides the following update in relation to the Company's £200
million Export Development Guarantee ("EDG") application.

The Department for Business and Trade ("DBT") has notified the Company that HM
Government will not be proceeding with the Company's application for the EDG
facility at this time. The Company has therefore expedited discussions with
Riverstone Credit Management LLC ("Riverstone") in order to secure alternative
new debt facilities to support the near-term working capital needs of the
business following its recent significant revenue growth. These alternative
financing arrangements are expected to close within the next few days.

 

Concurrent with Riverstone's financing, the Company remains in active dialogue
with key stakeholders, including the UK Government, around existing and future
contracts and the long-term capitalization plan for the business. As part of
this longer-term planning, the Company is engaging Rothschild & Co to
assess strategic options for the Group.

 

Additionally, the Company announces the following proposed Board changes:

 

·      John Wood will be taking a leave of absence from his role as CEO
with immediate effect.

·      Subject to completion of requisite client on-boarding procedures
and due diligence, Russell Downs is proposed to join the board as Interim
Executive Chairman. Russell is a highly experienced finance professional after
a 30-year career in a traditional big four accountancy practice helping
businesses and stakeholders across a wide spectrum of industries.  With
notable successes returning significant value to stakeholders and securing
complex refinancings, he is well placed to lead the Board at this time as it
seeks to complete a recapitalisation intended to give the Company a
sustainable financial footing into the medium and long term.

·      Subject to completion of requisite client on-boarding procedures
and due diligence, Alan Fort is proposed to join the board as a Non-Executive
Director. Alan has a long track record in performance improvement, with many
years of board level experience ensuring good governance and providing support
and challenge to management teams to ensure that goals are clearly defined and
performance is transparently monitored. Amongst other roles, Alan is currently
a Non-Executive Director at the steelmaker Celsa UK.

 

Other board members will remain in place, including Arun Raman as CFO and
Malcom Groat as a non-executive director.  These board changes are not
expected to have any material impact on the day-to-day operations of the
Group.

 

The Company will make further announcements as soon as practicable detailing
its new identified priorities and other relevant matters including an update
on its financial reporting and lifting of the suspension of its shares.

 

Russell Downs commented:

 

"I am very pleased to take on this role after a challenging period for the
Group as it transitions from one leadership team to another and deals with the
increasing speculation over its future. The great weight of responsibility
for all stakeholders involved in the business to secure a long-term future is
crystal clear to me and I am enormously honoured to be given the
responsibility to find a solution. I will be working tirelessly in
consultation with employees, management, customers, suppliers, unions,
government agencies and other stakeholder groups in the coming weeks."

 

For further information, please visit  www.harland-wolff.com
(http://www.harland-wolff.com/)   or contact:

 

 Harland & Wolff Group Holdings plc                                        +44 (0)20 3900 2122

 Malcolm Groat, Chairman                                                   investor@harland-wolff.com (mailto:investor@harland-wolff.com)

 Arun Raman, Chief Finance Officer                                         media@harland-wolff.com (mailto:media@harland-wolff.com)

 h2Radnor (Investor Relations)                                             +44 (0) 20 3897 1838

 Neville Harris / Josh Cryer
 Cavendish Capital Markets Limited (Nominated Adviser & Broker)            +44 (0)20 7397 8900

 Stephen Keys / Callum Davidson / Dan Hodkinson (Corporate Finance)

 Michael Johnson (Sales)

 Liberum Capital Limited (Joint Broker)                                    +44 (0)20 3100 2000

 Nicholas How / Edward Mansfield

About Harland & Wolff

 

Harland & Wolff is a multisite fabrication company, operating in the
maritime and offshore industry through five markets: commercial, cruise and
ferry, defence, energy and renewables and six services: technical services,
fabrication and construction, decommissioning, repair and maintenance,
in-service support and conversion.

 

Its Belfast yard is one of Europe's largest heavy engineering facilities,
with deep water access, two of Europe's largest drydocks, ample quayside and
vast fabrication halls. As a result of the acquisition of Harland & Wolff
(Appledore) in August 2020, the company has been able to capitalise on
opportunities at both ends of the ship-repair and shipbuilding markets where
there will be significant demand.

 

In February 2021, the company acquired the assets of two Scottish-based yards
along the east and west coasts. Now known as Harland & Wolff (Methil) and
Harland & Wolff (Arnish), these facilities will focus on fabrication work
within the renewables, energy and defence sectors.

 

In addition to Harland & Wolff, it owns the Islandmagee gas storage
project, which is expected to provide 25% of the UK's natural gas storage
capacity and to benefit the Northern Irish economy as a whole when completed.

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  MSCGZGMNZLVGDZM