John Laing chief steps down after six years at infrastructure giant
John Laing chief executive Olivier Brousse has this morning resigned from the long-running infrastructure firm in order to take up a new role at French utility Veolia.
Brousse, who has been at the firm since 2014 and led the firm’s initial public offering in 2015, will remain at the company while a successor is identified.
John Laing, which was founded in Carlisle in 1848, invests in private finance initiatives around the world.
In August last year the firm made its first investment in South America, taking a 30 per cent stake in Colombia’s Ruta del Cacao road project for £62m.
In December the company missed market estimates, causing shares to drop roughly eight per cent.
Brousse’s tenure has not been straightforward, with the group’s IPO missing its £1bn valuation, with shares trading at the bottom of forecasts.
However, since then John Laing’s shares have more than doubled in value, until last month saw the stock suffer its worst day in history due to a warning on the decline of power price forecasts.
Chairman Will Samuel thanked Brousse for his role in developing the company’s footprint around the world.
Brousse said: “John Laing is a great company with a fantastic team of people throughout the business, making my decision to leave all the more difficult.”
Shares fell over a per cent as the FTSE opened.