Abu Dhabi: Drake and Scull International’s (DSI) share prices jumped as much as seven per cent in the first hour or so of trade on Monday after the company announced the appointment of a new chief executive officer.
At 11.25am, share prices were up 5.64 per cent to Dh0.468, and were the most actively traded shares on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM) in terms of value. As of 11.30am, they accounted for 20 per cent of the total trade value in the market.
In a statement posted to the DFM website, DSI said it has approved the resignation of Khaldoun Tabara from his post as CEO, and appointed Wael Allan, who is currently serving as chief operating officer, as new CEO.
The appointment is effective Monday, and comes after several quarters of challenges in the construction sector that took a toll on DSI’s financials.
In the second quarter of 2016, DSI reported Dh207.6 million in losses attributed to the owners of the parent company – a plunge from the Dh10 million in profits reported in the same quarter last year.
The figure put losses for the first half at Dh197.8 million attributable or the owners – down from Dh35 million in profit in the first half of 2015.
In its statement, DSI said the appointment of a new CEO marks the final phase of a six-month management transition process initiated with Allan’s appointment as COO in the first half of this year.
Allan has over 26 years of global management experience in the construction sector spanning the US, Europe, Far East, and the Middle East. Prior to his appointment at DSI, he served as the CEO for Arcadis Middle East, and worked in senior management roles in other firms like Hyder Consulting, Washington Group International, and Raytheon Engineers, among others.
DSI also said in its statement that the now-former CEO, Tabara, will continue to serve as a non-executive board member, member of the executive committee, vice-chairman, and major shareholder.
