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Balfour Beatty poaches defence boss as new CEO
Construction group has recruited Leo Quinn, the boss of Qinetiq, as its new chief executive in a bid to restore stability following five profit warnings
Struggling construction group Balfour Beatty has poached Leo Quinn, the current boss of defence research company Qinetiq, as its new chief executive, according to reports.
Investors will hope Mr Quinn’s appointment will bring some stability to the company, which has been rocked by five profit warnings in less than two years and is also facing the departure of its chairman.
An announcement over Mr Quinn’s appointment is expected on Wednesday, according to Sky News.
Mr Quinn has been at Qinetiq for five years and was previously chief executive of banknote printer, De La Rue.
The appointment will mark a rare piece of good news for Balfour's long-suffering investors, who have been warned that the company could default on its debts if it fails to sell its US consultancy arm, Parsons Brinckerhoff.
The sale of Parsons Brinckerhoff was the key reason for the break-up of talks between Balfour Beatty and Carillion over a £3bn tie-up earlier this year. Carillion had wanted to retain the business but Balfour insisted on pressing ahead with a sale.
Balfour has told investors that a failure to approve the disposal, which will be put to the vote on October 28, could result in the contruction group breaching its banking covenants.