Latest news with #WoodGroup
Reuters
23-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
UK's Wood Group chair plans exit pending strategic clarity
May 23 (Reuters) - British oilfield services firm Wood Group (WG.L), opens new tab said on Friday its chairman, Roy Franklin, will stand for re-election at its annual general meeting but plans to step down once the company's future direction becomes clear.
Reuters
30-04-2025
- Business
- Reuters
UK's Wood Group delays 2024 result publication
April 30 (Reuters) - British oilfield services and engineering firm Wood Group (WG.L), opens new tab on Wednesday said it won't be able to publish its annual financial results for 2024 by the mandated April 30 deadline. Given the timing of the conclusion of the independent review and work needed to conclude the audit for 2024, the company expects not to publish 2024 accounts by April 30, Wood Group said. The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here. The company, which is currently a takeover target for Dubai-based Sidara, said in November last year it was initiating an independent review after recording exceptional charges in its interim results.
Press and Journal
27-04-2025
- Health
- Press and Journal
The Aberdeen rig worker who can't stop talking about his prostate
What is first thing I do when I arrive at Abbey George's house in Danestone to interview him? I go to the loo. It's the classic journalist's mistake — two cups of coffee before jumping in the car, completely forgetting I might be chatting for an hour or more. I've done it before and will do it again. This time, though, there's a big difference. Abbey was diagnosed with stage 3 prostate cancer last year. His condition first showed itself in — guess what? — needing to go to the bathroom a lot. When we finally sit down to talk, Abbey tells me all about it — how his wife Marie first noticed during house-hunting trips, when they were planning to move back to Aberdeen after a few years on the Moray Coast. And lo and behold, as he's telling me this, I start needing the toilet again. 'I just thought it was my age,' Abbey is saying to me. 'Cup of tea in the morning, coffee, then out the door. But we'd be driving to see houses and I'd have to stop on the road. Marie kept saying something wasn't right.' I nod along, still listening, but aware of my own bladder. I'll be fine, I tell myself. Too much caffeine, that's all. Which is exactly what Abbey told himself, too. Here's the thing. I don't have prostate cancer. My last check was a few months ago and I'm all clear. But it's entirely appropriate that I'm sitting in front of Abbey wondering if I might. Because that's exactly what he wants. Abbey is an offshore materials controller for Aberdeen-based Wood Group, and has spent the past 15 years working on North Sea rigs. Before that, he was in the army, a Gordon Highlander, so knows as well as anyone that talking about prostates – or peeing – isn't exactly standard conversation among men. But since having his prostate removed, Abbey has undergone a transformation. Back working offshore, he's appointed himself the North Sea's unofficial prostate tsar. He tells colleagues about the symptoms and the risks and how prostate is the most common cancer among men. He also highlights the importance of getting checked, even if they think it's nothing. It's a mission that can start with the absolute basics, such as what a prostate actually is. 'Guys offshore, they're like, 'So how's your bum?'' he laughs. 'I say, 'That's not the prostate.' They think it's all to do with your bum. They've got no idea what it actually does.' So far, his mission has been very successful. 'Once I tell them what I've been through, they listen,' he says. 'Then I say, 'Go get your PSA checked.' That's all it takes — a blood test.' He's had friends pull him aside offshore to ask questions they wouldn't say in front of the group. Some even message to say thanks for the nudge. 'I tell them straight. Don't wait. Don't assume it's just your age. If something feels off, go get it checked.' Just so we're all on the same page – I know YOU know, but some might not – the prostate is a small gland about the size of a walnut, tucked just below the bladder and surrounding the urethra — the tube that carries urine out of the body. When prostate cancer develops, it can press on the urethra and cause changes in urination – needing to pee more often, getting up during the night or struggling to go, which is exactly how it was for Abbey. His diagnosis started quietly. No pain or major warning sign, just a constant need to pee. He booked a PSA blood test through his GP and it came back raised. A month later, it was higher. Then came the digital rectal exam, the MRI scan and eventually a biopsy. It was Marie who first pushed him to get checked — and who sat beside him through every appointment. She also noticed how much Abbey struggled during recovery. When the cancer was confirmed, Abbey says he was still hoping it's a false alarm. 'We're sitting outside the UCAN clinic [at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary] and I still don't believe that's what it is. I think it's maybe an infection.' The cancer was on both sides of his prostate and more aggressive than doctors first suspected. He was offered radiotherapy or surgery. Because of his age, surgery was strongly recommended, so Abbey made the call. He wanted it out. The operation was a success, but it came with consequences. The prostate acts as a valve on urine flow, so when it is removed, it also takes away the patient's ability to hold in their pee. The pelvic floor muscles have to take over, and until they're retrained through regular exercises, many men experience leakage or a complete lack of bladder control. 'I was filling 12 [incontinence] pads a day,' Abbey says. 'There's no feeling. You cough, you leak. You stand up, you leak. It messes with your head.' Marie remembers that time vividly. 'He was so low. No motivation, no energy. Just sitting in silence. That wasn't like him at all.' Slowly, things got better. Abbey took to his pelvic floor exercises like a man possessed. Regaining control of his bladder was the one change that could make the biggest difference. 'I went from maybe 12 pads a day, down to four,' he says, 'and that was massive for me.' As his control got better, his confidence returned, so much so that next month he will take part in Aberdeen charity fashion show Brave, strutting down the catwalk at P&J Live in front of hundreds. Organised by cancer charity Friends of Anchor, Brave features men who've been through cancer. Abbey first attended as a guest in 2022. This year, he's walking the runway. 'I missed the first rehearsal because I was offshore,' he laughs. 'Turned up at the next one and they just threw me in.' In 2022, before his diagnosis, Abbey took on a 100-kilometre (62 miles) Sahara trek to raise money for Friends of Anchor and the Brain Tumour Charity in honour of friend Donna Stewart who battled cancer and a brain tumour. Donna passed away last year. 'That walk was the best thing I've ever done,' he says. 'It was brutal. But it was amazing.' He used to be the karaoke guy, belting out Deacon Blue's Dignity on nights out. That song now holds extra meaning, and becomes his slogan for the show. He shows me a ship in a bottle a friend bought for him, the little vessel displaying the name 'Dignity' on its miniature prow. 'Marie found a phrase online that said: 'Sailing the storm that is cancer on my ship called Dignity',' Abbey says. 'And I think, yeah. That's it. That's what I'm doing.' He's back to work and mostly back to himself. In the meantime, he's working hard on his pelvic floor exercises. 'It takes minutes,' he says. 'But if it gets me back to 100%, it's worth it.' Time to go, so I say goodbye to Abbey and Marie, giving their lovely French bulldog Millie a parting chin rub as a thank you for curling up beside me on the couch. I still need the loo, but I'm determined to make it back to the office so Abbey doesn't start digging out prostate cancer pamphlets for me. I do, and I'm fine. It's only been a few months since my last blood test, so surely even Abbey can't grumble. But he doesn't need to. His story does the work for him. Like his rig crew, and all the other people who have met him, I walk away a little wiser — and a lot more grateful.
The Herald Scotland
21-04-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Study to assess future of former Argos site in Scots town
The study adopts a "significant" amount of work undertaken to date by the Trust and their community partners and will now run a consultative process over the coming weeks. Mr Kummerer explained: 'This is an exciting stage. The Trust has carried out a significant amount of legwork to get to this point - not least of all their ongoing discussions with the site's owner as well as a formal survey and valuation of the site.' Tony Miklinski, Chair of CDT, added: 'The potential of the project is for a transformational multi-million-pound development at the heart not only of Cupar but also of north-east Fife. The opportunities that affords are significant - from a community support and wellbeing perspective to a sustainable, economic development that will secure and repurpose the property and see investment to drive commercial benefits to Cupar and our town's catchment.' READ MORE: Wood Group faces new twist as Gulf firm makes fresh takeover approach Scottish helicopter fleet operator acquires drone company Scottish entrepreneur on his formula for independent hotel success The study runs from now and is expected to report to the Trust in June with interim updates on a monthly basis. In those three months, consultations will take place with private, public and third sector organisations. Mr Kummerer said: 'Most importantly, the consultative process will engage with residents and businesses in and around Cupar to seek their input.' Mr Miklinski added: 'The Trust's working group includes a wealth of experience which not only gives the project credence but also demonstrates how it is embedded at a local level. This is not a project being parachuted into Cupar. It is being driven by people who are passionate about the town and region.' The site covers the 20,000 sq ft former Argos building as well as Ferguson Square – giving direct, level access for pedestrians to Crossgate and the town centre – and ramped access to Waterend Road with parking provision and vehicular access to the building. The working group has been considering potential uses – including the re-siting of the town's Food Bank to create a facility that is 'fit for purpose and future proofed', the creation of a food market, the opportunity for a training kitchen to provide educational support for cross-generational groups as well as the piloting of a fresh fruit and veg prescription service in support of GP Practices across north-east Fife and Levenmouth. Mr Miklinski was keen to explain that 'at this stage, nothing is set in concrete'. He said: 'The premise of the project was borne out of a need to better support vulnerable people in our area. Food is what brings us together - and so the Cupar Food Station's focus remains on food and drink - and the provision of the same, whether on a commercial basis or through charitable and social enterprise initiatives.' He concluded: 'Cupar is an historic market town. It is at the centre of an extraordinarily abundant region for farming, food and drink production and well as an amazing collection or companies using those ingredients to make and sell produce. The opportunity is for the Cupar Food Station to tap into that resource for the benefit of our community, creating an economically sustainable project that enables the Trust and its partners to continue in our support for Cupar and our large, rural catchment.'
Zawya
17-04-2025
- Business
- Zawya
UK's Wood Group extends deadline for Sidara's takeover offer
UK's Wood Group on Thursday said it has extended the deadline for a takeover offer by Dubai-based Sidara to May 15 from April 17. On Monday, the company received a proposal from Sidara comprising a takeover bid worth about 242 million pounds ($320.5 million) and up to $450 million in cash. Wood Group had said it would be "minded to recommend" a firm offer on such terms to its shareholders, if made. The British oilfield services and engineering firm rekindled talks for a potential takeover in February, after Sidara shelved its initial plans to buy the group last year, citing rising geopolitical risks and uncertainty in the financial market. This development marks the second extension Wood Group has granted to Sidara, with the first taking place in March. ($1 = 0.7552 pounds) (Reporting by Anandita Mehrotra in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)
