The offer is subject to due diligence of non-public information, which Opus says it will provide. The company advised shareholders to take no action pending deliberations by a sub-committee of independent directors, who will appoint an independent adviser to assess the merits of the proposal.
Opus is scheduled to release its first-half results tomorrow. The Wellington-based company reported a loss of $29.9 million, or 20 cents per share, in calendar 2016, compared to a profit of $16.7 million, or 11 cents, a year earlier.
WSP chief executive Alexandre L'Heureux said Opus will be able to "greatly leverage WSP's customer base and strong international brand equity to significantly bolster its positioning and growth outside of New Zealand." At the same time, it would give WSP an opportunity to improve its presence and expertise in the Australia and New Zealand markets, particularly New Zealand, where Opus "has a leadership presence".
The takeover documents say Opus shares "have performed significantly worse than the NZX 50 Index" over the past two years, with its performance negatively impacted by offshore challenges." It cited Opus's 2016 earnings, which showed an earnings before interest and tax loss in Australia, Canada and the US and a drop in ebit in the UK.
Opus said at the time that its Australian and Canadian units were hit hard by the collapse in oil prices. The company restructured its business last year along sector lines of buildings, water and transportation instead of country-based divisions, which it said was "essential to ensure a viable future for the business."