Atkins announces new Chief Executive

Dr Uwe Krueger will join the Board on 14 June 2011 as chief executive designate and take over as chief executive on 1 August 2011.

The Board of WS Atkins plc (“Atkins” and “the Group”) today announces that Keith Clarke will retire from his position as chief executive and director on 31 July 2011 after almost eight years in the role. The Board is delighted to announce the appointment of Dr Uwe Krueger as his successor. Dr Krueger will join the Board on 14 June 2011 as chief executive designate and take over as chief executive on 1 August 2011.

Dr Uwe Krueger will join the Board on 14 June 2011 as chief executive designate and take over as chief executive on 1 August 2011.

Allan Cook, chairman said: “Keith is retiring as chief executive, having steered the Group back to being a high performing business, successfully navigated a world recession and charted the course for growth. This is a natural time for him to hand the baton over to Uwe Krueger to continue the Group’s development as a multi-national organisation. He leaves the Group with an excellent track record and a low carbon legacy. The Board is delighted that Keith will remain with the Group as director of sustainability and to assist with the development of our Middle East business. On behalf of the Board, I am delighted to welcome a businessman of Uwe’s calibre to lead the Group.”

Dr Krueger (46) is a physicist who studied at the University of Frankfurt, graduating with a PhD in complex system theory and brain research. He also studied at Columbia University (New York), the Ecole Normale Supérieure (Paris) and at Harvard (Boston). He has spent the majority of his career leading engineering and consulting organisations in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific. He has a proven ability to drive and implement operational success in very large international organisations.

He began his career at international strategy consulting firm, A T Kearney, followed by leadership positions at Hochtief AG, an international provider of construction services, including CEO of central and eastern Europe and senior vice president and chairman of Turner International based in Dallas, USA. More recently he was chief executive officer of Swiss company, Oerlikon, one of the world’s leading high-tech industrial companies specialising in machine and plant engineering. He joins Atkins from Texas Pacific Group, a private equity investment firm based in London and San Francisco and Cleantech Switzerland, a trade promotion organisation in the area of sustainability which operates on behalf of the Swiss Federal Government. He is currently on the Board of STR Holdings (Connecticut, USA), Zementis, Inc (San Diego) and ONTEX S.A. (Zele, Belgium).

There is no other information to be disclosed pursuant to LR9.6.13R in respect of Dr Krueger.