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    UK offshore employment recovering slowly, report finds

    Aug. 13, 2021
    Last year’s combination of the pandemic and plunging oil and gas prices impacted employment in Britain’s offshore sector, according to Oil and Gas UK.
    (Courtesy OGUK)
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    Offshore staff

    LONDON – Last year’s combination of the pandemic and plunging oil and gas prices impacted employment in Britain’s offshore sector, according to Oil and Gas UK (OGUK).

    The association’s annual Workforce & Employment Insight report estimated that the total number of indirect jobs supported by the sector fell by 30,000 to around 91,700 in 2020, while direct jobs were down by nearly 5,000 to 25,700. However, improving commodity prices and renewable energy projects are sparking a revival in activity this year, with more than 11,200 personnel on board offshore in mid-June compared with 7,000 in April 2020.

    Both indirect and directly supported jobs are also set to rise slightly in 2021, with evidence that oil and gas personnel are increasingly working in renewable and other low carbon projects.

    Earlier this year OGUK’s members signed up to the North Sea Transition Deal, a partnership with the UK government designed to help Britain achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

    OGUK chief executive Deirdre Michie said the findings of the Insight report underlined the need for continued support for a managed transition to a low-carbon future that prioritizes the UK energy’s security and jobs.

    “We’ve not yet fully recovered from the events of the last 18 months, but the relaxing of movement restrictions plus the industry’s focus on the wellbeing of workers mean jobs are starting to return. This is a welcome recovery, but it is very fragile and we cannot take it for granted.

    “At the same time, we face the even greater challenge of adapting to climate change. Our industry already has the expertise to deliver new technologies, such as carbon capture and storage or mass hydrogen production, which will be essential in cutting the UK’s emissions.

    “However, it can only do this if the government reinforces its support for industry by working to deliver the commitments within the North Sea Transition Deal and by continuing to ensure fiscal and regulatory stability.”

    08/13/2021