Wood Group said on Monday that the deadline by which Dubai's Sidara must either announce a formal intention to make an offer for the company or walk away has been extended.
Under UK takeover rules, Sidara had until 24 March but this has now been pushed back to 17 April, at the request of Wood Group.

The oilfield services and engineering company confirmed on 24 February that it had received a non-binding, conditional proposal from Sidara about a potential cash offer.

"Following this, Wood provided Sidara with access to due diligence information and entered into discussions with Sidara," it said on Monday.

Wood said discussions are continuing and the board of Wood has therefore requested an extension to the 'put up or shut up' deadline.

The company said a further announcement will be made in due course, adding that there can no certainty that an offer will be made, nor as to the terms on which it will be made.