New Chairman appointed to Balfour Beatty Board

11 February, 2015

New Chairman appointed to lead Balfour Beatty Board

Balfour Beatty, the international infrastructure group is pleased to announce that Philip Aiken will join the Board as non-executive Chairman with effect from 26 March 2015.

Philip has extensive international business experience in the industrials and resources sector having worked across the UK, US, Asia and the Middle East. He is currently non-executive Chairman of Aveva Group plc, a non-executive director of National Grid plc and of Newcrest Mining Limited. Philip will be stepping down from the board of National Grid plc on 25 February 2015.

Current Chairman Steve Marshall will retire from the Board on 25 March 2015. Peter Zinkin, Planning and Developments Director will step down from the Board on the same date and will retire in August.

Leo Quinn, Balfour Beatty Group Chief Executive, said: "Philip has many years of highly relevant international Board-level experience at the top of industry and we look forward to his valuable contribution to the business, including areas of paramount importance to the Group such as safety. The Board is focused on the group wide transformation programme and capturing the significant opportunity to drive leaner stronger processes, improved profits and strong cash generation to the benefit of our shareholders.

"We would like to thank Steve and Peter for their many years of commitment and determination and wish them well for the future."

Philip Aiken said: "I am very much looking forward to working with the Board and the executive team in setting the business back on the course of value creation with Leo and his team. Balfour Beatty has great people and a vast depth of engineering capability and technical expertise.The Group is striving to ensure that the value delivered to our customers translates into best-in-class performance and restores Balfour Beatty to strength."

The Company confirms that there is no further information about Philip Aiken requiring disclosure under paragraph 9.6.13 (2) to (6) of the Listing Rules of the UK Listing Authority.

Ends

Analysts/ investor enquiries:

Anoop Kang: Tel. +44 (0)20 7216 6913anoop.kang@balfourbeatty.com

Media enquiries:

Dominic Cheetham, Tel. +44 (0)20 7963 4235dominic.cheetham@balfourbeatty.com

Notes to editors

Philip Aiken AM - CV

Philip Aiken holds, or has held, the following directorships of publicly quoted companies in the previous seven years. He was Chairman of Robert Walters plc from 2007 to 2012 and a non-executive (and Senior Independent) director of Kazakhmys plc and Essar Energy plc. From 2006 to 2009 he was a Senior Advisor at Macquarie Bank Ltd. Philip was awarded the Order of Australia (AM) in 2013 in recognition of his contribution to Anglo-Australian business.

His early career began at BOC Gases which he joined in 1970 after graduating in Chemical Engineering from the University of Sydney. In 1995 he was appointed Chief Executive of BTR Nylex and in 1997 he joined BHP Billiton where he was President BHP Petroleum from 1997 to 2003 and Group President Energy from 2004 to 2006. 

About Balfour Beatty plc

Balfour Beatty is a leading international infrastructure group. With 36,000 employees, we provide innovative and efficient infrastructure that underpins our daily lives, supports communities and enables economic growth.

We finance, develop, build and maintain complex infrastructure such as transportation, power and utility systems, social and commercial buildings. Our main geographies are the UK, US, Middle East and South East Asia. Over the last 100 years we have created iconic buildings and infrastructure all over the world including the London Olympics' Aquatic Centre, Hong Kong's first Zero Carbon building, the world's biggest shopping mall in Dubai, the National Museum of the Marine Corps in the US and the Channel Tunnel Rail Link.