Wood defends new IT centre in Ireland
Firm says move will help to boost efficiency for oil and gas companies
WOOD Group is setting up an advanced information technology (IT) centre in Ireland with support from the country’s government in a move that could provoke criticism in Scotland.
The Aberdeen-based engineering giant said the new data analytics base will help oil and gas firms boost efficiency, as the North Sea industry battles the deep downturn triggered by the crude price slump.
Wood Group has cut thousands of UK jobs in response.
However, the company expects to create 10 jobs in the new centre in Ireland over the next year, with more to follow.
Wood Group said it wanted to build on the expertise it has developed in Ireland over several years.
But the decision to increase investment there could prove controversial on several levels.
Wood Group has just settled a bitter dispute with North Sea workers after cost-cutting moves provoked the first strike action in the area for years.
Data analytics is a booming industry in which Scotland is seen as having good growth prospects given the strength of the country’s existing technology base and universities.
The success of firms like the Skyscanner flight search business is based on their ability to handle large amounts of data.
A range of early stage financial technology firms are helping banks make the most of the huge amounts of information they hold.
Scottish Enterprise has been trying to support the growth of the IT sector in Scotland, latterly under the chairmanship of former Wood Group boss Bob Keiller.
Wood highlighted the support it had received from IDA Ireland, without disclosing the amount of funding concerned.
IDA Ireland tries to attract foreign investment into the country. The agency has highlighted the potential opportunities that the Brexit vote for the UK to leave the European Union may create to win more inward investment.
Dublin is jockeying with other European cities to attract technology and financial services firms that may decide to shift operations from the UK to ensure access to the single market.
Wood Group said the Brexit vote had no influence on the decision to establish the data analytics centre in Galway, which it said represented an evolutionary move.
The group has had an IT operation in Galway since 2008, which it acquired through the takeover of Ireland’s MCS Technology.
A spokesman said the new centre will allow Wood to centralise the data analytics work that is being completed across the group in a dedicated hub.
Asked why Wood decided to establish the new centre in Ireland and whether any work would be transferred there from Scotland, the spokesman explained: “I think you’re looking at a Scotland versus Ireland angle but it’s not one that’s really there. It’s simply we had that expertise over in that part of Ireland that we are building on.”
No jobs will be lost in Scotland as a result of the centre opening.
A Scottish Enterprise spokesman said: “The data analytics centre in Ireland relates to an acquisition made by the Wood Group some time ago, so this is not a new development which Scotland was competing for.”
The new facility looks set to play an important role in Wood Group’s efforts to respond to the challenges that are being posed by the oil price fall.
Wood Group has seen activity levels slump in the core North Sea market, where it helps firms run oil and gas facilities and develop new ones.
Earlier this week, Oil & Gas UK forecast that the North Sea industry would incur a cash deficit of £2.7 billion this year.
Led by chief executive Robin Watson, Wood has been trying to help the firms that own oil and gas fields to boost profitability. The group has also been diversifying into new areas to reduce its reliance on oil and gas work.
Bob Macdonald, who runs Wood’s technical solutions business, said: “We recognise the power of data analytics to enable our energy industry clients to optimise their exploration and drilling activities, enhance efficiencies and maximize the productivity of their assets.
“This new centre, made possible through the support of the IDA, greatly enhances our capabilities.”
‘‘ There’s no Scotland v ireland angle. We had that expertise over in thatpartofIrelandthat we are building on