UK oil company hit with £13 million fine for repeatedly issuing inaccurate financial results.

John Wood Group has received a penalty of almost £13 million for repeatedly issuing erroneous financial statements.

The FTSE‑listed oil and engineering firm, slated for acquisition by a Dubai‑based competitor, has earlier acknowledged that “cultural failings” caused data to be withheld from auditors.

On Wednesday, the Financial Conduct Authority imposed a £12.9 million sanction on Wood Group for misreporting between January 2023 and November 2024.

The regulator launched its probe into the firm in June of the previous year.

The FCA stated that, after several projects underperformed, Wood Group’s accounting decisions were improperly swayed by a wish to preserve earlier reported figures.

The regulator further noted that the company lacked sufficient systems, controls or procedures to avert such occurrences.

Initially, a £18.5 million fine was contemplated, but the penalty was reduced by 30 % after the firm accepted the regulator’s conclusions.

Aberdeen‑based Wood Group, which provides engineering and consultancy services for offshore platforms, has been managing the accounting repercussions since 2024, when it commissioned Deloitte to conduct an independent financial review.

The review revealed “inappropriate management pressure” to adhere to existing financial statements despite difficulties in several project contracts.

These issues pertained to “legacy lump‑sum turnkey projects”, in which a single contractor oversees design through construction.

The situation worsened when Wood Group’s chief financial officer, Arvind Balan, resigned suddenly last year after it was discovered he had misrepresented his professional credentials.

During the same interval, Sidara, the Middle Eastern engineering firm that later consented to acquire Wood Group in November, markedly lowered its proposals for the UK company, citing market instability.

The transaction, expected to close next week, will transfer Wood Group for merely £216 million, a small portion of Sidara’s original 2024 offer of £1.58 billion.

The acquisition will also render Wood Group the newest departure from the London Stock Exchange, joining former listings such as gambling group Flutter Entertainment, construction equipment firm Ashtead and drugmaker Indivior.

Wood Group’s market capitalisation stood at £199 million on Wednesday.

Its shares had declined by 91 % over the past five years.

Steve Smart, the FCA’s enforcement director, remarked: “Investors depend on reliable data to make choices. Wood Group did not deliver this and fell far short of the standards we expect from listed firms.”

In a statement addressing “historic financial reporting matters”, Wood Group noted that the regulator’s conclusions aligned with Deloitte’s review.

It further stated: “Wood fully cooperated with the FCA during the investigation. The firm has devised a remediation and governance action plan to tackle the issues highlighted in the independent review and has begun implementing the plan, as the FCA observed in its findings.”