The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
ACTIVITY
UK decommissioning activity is expected to increase due to the effects of Covid-19, but threats to jobs and the longevity of skilled SMEs will impact the “capacity and capability” to carry it out.
Will Rowley, interim chief executive of Decom North Sea (DNS), said some older facilities, close to the end of their lives, will “struggle” in the lower oil price environment and “generally expects to see an increase” in decom over time.
Rystad Energy published research last month to support that, predicting annual spending will increase by 20% by 2022 as operators run out of investable production opportunities, with 80% of the £14bn to be spent by 2024 being in the UK. the UKCS may only serve to disrupt the supply chain to the degree that the specialist skills required are no longer available further down the line when we are going to need them.”
It’s a sentiment Rowley agrees with, particularly when it comes to the prospect of the UK’s expertise, which is hoped to be exported globally, being lost.
He said: “It could and potentially would have an impact on export opportunities.
“We’re already in an active dialogue around opportunities in places such as Brunei, Malaysia, northern Brazil, even parts of Mexico, where there are lots of similar, ageing facilities similar to UK structures
“People overseas are looking to our members so it could have an impact. It’s critical for the UK, but we’re also actively working to export that.”