The engineering and construction company said the write-down was in response to recent actions taken by ONGC and Origin that made the outcome of each project uncertain.

Clough’s major shareholder, South African-headquartered engineering and construction group Murray & Roberts, has agreed to financially support a recapitalisation of the company.

Clough is planning a $40 million rights issue, with Murray & Roberts guaranteeing a standby facility of $20 million.

The shareholder has also agreed to provide further guarantees of $150 million to support financing a vessel upgrade and the acquisition program announced in February.

Under the recapitalisation, John Cooper will step down as chief executive of Clough into the role of non-executive director.

Cooper said the restructuring of the company’s balance sheet was necessary to allow Clough to focus on current contracts and plan for the future.

“The proposed recapitalisation enables the company to deal with the consequences of three very damaging and expensive contracts, which have been adversely impacting our recent past,” he said.

“We reported a profit in the last two halves, and we expect our full-year core earnings to be ahead of previous guidance to the market, clearly demonstrating that outside of these legacy contracts, Clough’s operations are successfully delivering results.”