Dubai’s Drake & Scull replaces three senior execs including CFO

Dubai contractor Drake and Scull International (DSI) has replaced three senior executive positions even as the struggling company continues its restructuring efforts.

DSI has appointed Khaled Jarrar as the new group CFO, Mohamed Ghanem as the chief legal officer and Mike Grant as the chief restructuring officer, it announced on Tuesday.

The Dubai-listed firm created the post of chief restructuring officer in 2018, and appointed former CFO Feras Khalthoum to the role in July. It also appointed PG Raut as its new CFO at the time.

DSI’s board also clarified on Tuesday that its restructuring committee would be chaired by the company’s recently appointed chairman Obaid Bin Touq with members including Khamis Buamim, Ahmad Kilani and group CEO Tawfiq Abu Soud.

DSI, hit hard by the construction slowdown in the region, has seen several leadership changes as it seeks to restructure operations.

Abu Soud took over as the new group CEO on January 23, 2019 replacing Yousef Al Mulla, who was appointed to the role in August 2018 – the second executive in less than five months.

Read: Dubai contractor Drake & Scull appoints new group CEO

Bin Touq stated: “The board has focused on rebuilding DSI’s leadership management team with industry professionals who have experience within the sector and with the company and have entrusted Tawfiq Abu Soud to lead the leadership team.

“We believe that these appointments will provide a vital impetus to the company’s ongoing restructuring aims and at the same time support our efforts to put in place a turnaround strategy that will provide a stable platform for the future.

“The company is working with the relevant government authorities to obtain the necessary approvals so as to be in a position to brief our shareholders on the restructuring plans at the upcoming general assembly meeting,” he added.

Dubai-listed DSI appointed in November Trussbridge Advisors (DIFC), Allen & Overy, Al Tamimi & Company, and Deloitte as joint-advisors to work on a restructuring plan for the firm.

The firm saw its accumulated losses reach more than Dhs1.1bn by the end of the third quarter of last year.

Read: Dubai’s Drake & Scull appoints advisors after posting Dhs500m Q3 loss

An earlier restructuring in 2017 saw three quarters of its share capital wiped out to expunge losses of Dhs1.7bn, as well as a Dhs500m injection of capital from shareholder Tabarak Investment.

In October, shareholders also voted to allow the company to continue as a going concern, despite DSI posting heavy losses in the last few years.

Read: Dubai’s Drake and Scull shareholders decide not to dissolve the company