The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Celebration of excellence at Oil and Gas UK Awards
Offshore: More than 550 people attend prestigious ceremony at P&J Live
Champions of the offshore industry were honoured in style at the annual Oil and Gas UK Awards in Aberdeen last night.
More than 550 people gathered for the prestigious ceremony at P&J Live, celebrating work across the sector, from new developments to decommissioning and a new award for the energy transition.
A fledgling star at Taqa, Erin Ingram, received Graduate of the Year for her efforts in saving the firm £20 million and unlocking more than 800,000 barrels of oil through innovative commercial deals.
Meanwhile, operator Total took the business innovation gong for a large enterprise through its work in using 3D-printed equipment for its newlystarted Culzean field in the North Sea.
A total of 30 finalists, from a record of more than 100 entrants, contended for the 10 awards presented at the event, hosted by BBC journalist Victoria Derbyshire.
The new accolade for work in the energy transition went to BP, with judges being impressed by its North Sea Carbon Plan which focuses on reducing emissions, improving knowledge and understanding performance through use of new technologies.
Praising the winners, Deirdre Michie, chief executive of OGUK, said: “OGUK’s annual awards ceremony is a highly regarded event within the UK oil and gas industry calendar and this was one of the most competitive years yet.
“The success of our industry is down to the talent, ingenuity and skill of our people and that’s what these awards celebrate.
“A huge congratulations to our winners and a sincere thank you to all our finalists, whose dedication and expertise help us continually raise the bar on industry excellence.”
Apprentice of the Year went to Ashley Thomas of BP, who impressed judges with his safety ethos.
Meanwhile Teresa Waddington, plant manager at Shell’s Fife NGL plant, was named Mentor of the Year for helping her colleagues find direction in their professional and personal lives by discovering their talents and capabilities.
The award for MER UK (Maximising Economic Recovery) went to the partnership of Neptune Energy, BP and Japex in their approach to unlocking the new Seagull development.
Repsol Sinopec Resources UK took home the excellence in decommissioning gong for its work in safely shutting down assets which are at the end of their production lives.
CNR International was honoured for its efforts in diversity and inclusion while the workforce engagement accolade went to PD&MS group.
WFS Technologies was crowned the winner of the Business Innovation category for its Seatooth Radio device which can communicate through steel, ground, sea water and the water-air boundary in order to enable true subsea automation.
Steve Phimister, vicepresident of event sponsor Shell’s UK upstream business, said: “It has been hugely rewarding to celebrate the talents and achievements of all the people who help the UK oil and gas industry make such a vital contribution to today’s energy sector.
“These are also the people who will play a key role in shaping the future success of the industry, as the UK navigates the energy transition,” he added.