The Times20 Feb 2025 04:59
John Wood finance chief quits over qualifications ‘oversight’
Arvind Balan was described as a chartered accountant instead of a certified practising accountant when he joined the engineering consultancy
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Greig Cameron, Scottish Business Editor
Wednesday February 19 2025, 8.50pm GMT, The Times
Portrait of a man in a suit.
Arvind Balan said the mistake had been “an honest oversight”
The chief financial officer of John 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.
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.
The former Wood finance director was recommended for the post by the company’s nomination committee which was chaired by Roy Franklin. Odgers Berndtson, one of the UK’s leading executive headhunters, conducted the search for candidates, according to the Wood annual report.
Before joining Wood, Balan was finance chief at the civil aerospace business of Rolls-Royce and had also previously worked at Shell.
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.
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.”
Ken Gilmartin, 53, chief executive, said: “On behalf of the board and the company, I would like to wish Arvind all the best in his future endeavours.”
Balan participated in calls with Gilmartin last Friday as Wood unveiled a disappointing trading update, with plans to return to positive free cashflow this year delayed until 2026. The outlook sent shares in the Aberdeen-based company to record lows but the price has dropped further this week.
Shares in John Wood closed down 4¾p, or 16.6 per cent, at 24¼p, giving the business a market capitalisation of a little over £200 million.
An independent review of some of Wood’s financial transactions was announced in November and remains ongoing, although Gilmartin said there was not expected to be a “material” cash impact from it.
Wood was also subject to a £1.7 billion takeover approach by Apollo Global Management in 2023 and one potentially worth £1.6 billion b
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