Energy firm cuts more jobs after merger
Services provider has trimmed more than 3,000 positions recently as offshore market remains weak
Energy services firm TechnipFMC cuts 3,000 jobs as it continues to navigate a weak offshore market.
The energy services provider TechnipFMC has cut more than 3,000 jobs worldwide in recent months as the company continues to navigate a weak offshore oil and gas market and consolidate operations after last year’s merger of Paris-based Technip with Houston’s FMC Technologies, company officials said.
The company, which focuses on the offshore sector, has eliminated almost 7,000 jobs since the merger closed about a year ago, according to the company. TechnipFMC reported that it employed 44,000 people in early 2017. It recently said its global workforce numbered more than 37,000.
TechnipFMC would not disclose how many jobs were cut in Houston or other speciic locations. The company has dual heaquarters in Paris and Houston, where the CEO, Doug Pferdehirt, is based. The company is consolidating offices in Houston, giving up space previously occupied by Technip in the Energy Corridor.
The offshore sector has
lagged in the oil and gas industry recovery as producers have focused spending on less expensive onshore holdings, particularly U.S. shale fields such as the Permian Basin in West Texas. The offshore sector has gone through a wave of consolidations, including Norwegian company Borr Drilling’s deal earlier this week to buy Houston driller Paragon Offshore.
Last fall, British driller Ensco acquired Houston’s Atwood Oceanics in an $850 million deal. In January, Transocean, the Swiss offshore driller with a large Houston presence, completed its acquisition of Norway’s Songa Offshore for $1.1 billion.
Rising oil prices are beginning to generate some new activity offshore. Less than a month ago, for example. four of the worlds’ biggest oil companies — Chevron, Royal Dutch Shell, BP and Total — announced major deep-water discoveries in the Gulf of Mexico and North Sea.
On Friday, Schlumberger, the world’s largest oil field services provider, said it plans to form a joint venture with Londonbased Subsea 7 to offer a variety of deep-water services and compete with companies like TechnipFMC, which offer integrated services that include engineering, construction, technology, and equipment.
TechnipFMC remains one of the world’s largest energy services companies, and it is growing in some areas such as West Texas, spokeswoman Delphine Nayral said.
“We are recruiting in some parts of the world,” she said. “Our objective remains to have a lean and efficient organization able to deliver our projects and reinforce our leadership in the industry.”
TechnipFMC posted a $154 million loss in the fourth quarter. For all of 2017, Technip earned a profit of $113 million.
TechnipFMC stock gained 16 cents Friday on the New York Stock Exchange, closing at $30.70.