Wood Group loses chief executive ahead of crunch shareholder meeting

Wood Group’s chief executive is to step down after a shareholder vote on Sidara’s £216 million acquisition of the Aberdeen-based energy and engineering services heavyweight.

Ken Gilmartin will be replaced by Iain Torrens, currently Wood’s interim group chief financial officer (CFO).

Torrens, who joined the group’s board and executive leadership team in February, has more than three decades of senior leadership experience across listed companies, including executive director and group CFO roles at TalkTalk Group and ICAP. He is said to have a “strong track record” in corporate governance, strategic transformation and board stewardship.

Ken Gilmartin is to step down after an upcoming shareholder vote and until then will remain in post to support an 'orderly transition'.

Wood said a process was underway to identify a new CFO and further announcements will be made in due course on that appointment and the timing of Gilmartin’s departure.

Chairman Roy Franklin said: “We are pleased to announce the appointment of Iain as Wood’s new CEO. Since joining the company earlier this year, Iain has demonstrated experience, leadership and decisiveness to guide the business through a very challenging period. The board is confident he is well-placed to lead the company into its next chapter.

“On behalf of the board and the company, I would like to wish Ken all the best for the future,” he added.

Torrens said: “It’s a privilege to lead Wood and our exceptional global team of over 35,000, who have remained committed to delivering for our clients through a difficult period. My immediate priority is delivering our full year 2024 audited accounts and half year 2025 results so we can move forward with clarity.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to support our people, drive performance, and strengthen client confidence as we shape a resilient, growth-focused future for Wood.”

The group said Gilmartin would step down after the upcoming shareholder vote on the takeover by United Arab Emirates-based Sidara and until then will remain in post to support an “orderly transition”. Gilmartin succeeded Robin Watson as CEO in 2022.

John Wood Group plc, to give it its full name, is a storied Scottish business of considerable global scale. Founded more than four decades ago from fishing industry roots, the company’s fortunes have tracked the growth of the North Sea sector and with it a push into related energy and specialist engineering markets, both domestically, and increasingly, overseas. These days, the Aberdeen-headquartered empire spans more than 60 countries employing some 35,000 people.

The person most closely associated with Wood is North-east businessman and philanthropist Sir Ian Wood, who is credited as being largely responsible for the transformation of a regional player of modest scale into a multi-billion-dollar revenue multinational. He served as the group's managing director and chief executive from 1967 to 2006, and as chairman until 2012.

The company has faced a number of challenges in recent years. Its bumper £2.2 billion acquisition of Amec Foster Wheeler in 2017 loaded the business with debt and costs that it has struggled under since.

Sidara, which rebranded from Dar Group in 2023, has said that it intends to retain the Wood brand.