News agency Reuters reported over the weekend that Saudi Binladin Group (SBG) is on the brink of a major restructuring that could see the construction giant shed hundreds of jobs and be stripped of business units operating under the group’s banner.
Quoting a number of sources, Reuters said that a holding group will be formed under a new name after the government acquired a 35% stake and control over the struggling company.
SBG currently owns 527 business units and a rationalisation programme will be instigated to streamline SBG’s assets with some “sold off, wound down or merged”. Quoting a number of sources, Reuters said that a holding group will be formed under a new name after the government acquired a 35% stake in the struggling company. SBG’s operational maintenance, real estate, energy and advanced technology and business investments are expected to be kept with the Saudi Binladin name remaining as the name of a contractor-arm.
At its height, SBG employed over 100,000 employee and was one of the biggest construction companies in the world. Recent years has seen it struggle with the slump in construction activity in the Kingdom and members of the owning Binladin family were targeted in last year’s anti-graft campaign.
In January, SBG released a statement asserting that it remains a private sector company owned by its shareholders amid reports that some of those shareholders may be transferring their shares to the government as part of a financial settlement with authorities.