Engineering giant fined £13m by financial watchdog over inaccurate accounts

The UK firm was sold to Dubai-based firm Sidara late last year for £216 million NewsBusinessEngineering giant fined £13m by financial watchdog over inaccurate accountsThe UK firm was sold to Dubai-based firm Sidara late last year for £216 millionHenry Saker-Clark Wednesday 04 March 2026 12:28 GMTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popoveropen image in galleryAberdeen-based Wood Group’s shares are currently suspended (Danny Lawson/PA)Your support helps us to tell the storyRead moreSupport NowFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreWood Group, the energy and engineering services giant, has been hit with a £13 million fine from the UK's financial regulator for disseminating misleading information within its financial reports.The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) confirmed that the Aberdeen-headquartered firm's full-year results for 2022 and 2023, alongside its half-year figures for 2024, contained the erroneous data. The watchdog stated that Wood Group "failed to take reasonable care to ensure that its announcements about those results were not false or misleading".The revelations led to a suspension of the company's shares last year, as Wood Group was compelled to delay several financial updates while it worked to restate its figures. An independent review, conducted by Deloitte last year, subsequently uncovered "material weaknesses and failures in the group’s financial culture" within its projects business unit and its engagement with the group finance team.Separately, the FCA initiated its own investigation into potential reporting irregularities at the business in June.open image in gallerySidara had tabled a lowered bid for Wood Group in August 2025, following the regulatory investigation and had made the deal's completion conditional on the British company publishing its delayed 2024 results and ensuring that certain debt facilities were not terminated. (PA Wire)It said Wood Group saw a 30 per cent reduction on its potential fine after agreeing with the regulator’s findings.Wood Group was sold to Dubai-based firm Sidara late last year for £216 million, having reduced previous offers for the business. Wood Group's issues came to light from November 2024, triggering a 85 per cent plunge in its share price by April 2025 and leading to a share suspension the following month. Steve Smart, executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the Financial Conduct Authority, said: “Investors rely on accurate information to make decisions.“Wood Group failed to provide this and fell well short of the high standards we expect of listed companies.”open image in galleryThe Financial Conduct Authority ( FCA ) confirmed that the Aberdeen -headquartered firm's full-year results for 2022 and 2023, alongside its half-year figures for 2024, contained the erroneous dataA spokesperson for FCA added: “The FCA opened its investigation into Wood Group in June 2025 and concluded it within nine months. “This is an example of how the FCA is improving the pace of its enforcement investigations.” Sidara had tabled a lowered bid for Wood Group in August 2025, following the regulatory investigation and had made the deal's completion conditional on the British company publishing its delayed 2024 results and ensuring that certain debt facilities were not terminated. Wood Group met the regulatory conditions for the deal earlier this week and expects to close the transaction on March 10. More aboutAberdeenEnergyFCAJoin our commenting forumJoin thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their repliesCommentsMost popularPopular videosBulletinRead next