The chief financial officer of Aberdeen's Wood Group has resigned after it emerged that his professional qualifications had been misstated.
Arvind Balan said it had been an “honest oversight” that he was described as a chartered accountant rather than a certified practising accountant.
Shares in Wood Group - which was the subject of a £1.5billion takeover bid last year - closed down 16.6%, at 24.26p, giving the business a market capitalisation of around £200million.
Mr Balan, 44, was hired in November 2023 and formally joined the energy engineering consultancy in April last year. He was described as a chartered accountant in official announcements by the company.
Before joining Wood, Mr Balan was finance chief at the civil aerospace business of Rolls-Royce and had also previously worked at Shell. Odgers Berndtson, one of the UK’s leading executive headhunters, conducted the search for candidates, according to the Wood annual report.
His appointment was seen by analysts as a positive move in the turnaround efforts at Wood. However, Balan tendered his resignation after it was found “the incorrect description of his professional qualifications” was in the public domain.
In a statement released after the market closed on Wednesday the Wood board said it had accepted the resignation with immediate effect.
Mr Balan said: “Regrettably, I made an honest oversight with respect to the description of my professional qualification as a chartered accountant instead of a certified practising accountant. I continue to believe in the long-term potential of the company and its people. My decision is based on minimising distraction at this very pivotal time with our investors and lenders.”
Wood Chief Executive Ken Gilmartin said: “On behalf of the board and the company, I would like to wish Arvind all the best in his future endeavours.”
The news continues a tough month for the company after shares plunged by 55.6% when it warned of shrinking cash resources following a poor trading performance. The company is also addressing “weaknesses and failures” in past reporting of its finances.