UK Decom workforce boosted by Skills Charter

Decom North Sea, the UK body representing the offshore decommissioning industry, has signed the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board’s (ECITB) Skills Charter, DNS said in a statement April 15.

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“Decommissioning is a growth area for the offshore industry and this new relationship is highly significant for future skills development, with the potential to pioneer new industry standards and the extension of the range of approved training courses and providers available to members,” Nigel Jenkins, head of DNS, said in the statement.

Decommissioning expenditure in the North Sea is currently estimated at between £1.1 billion and £2.6 billion per year ($1.7-4.0 billion) and is expected to reach over £17 billion between 2014 and 2022, according to a report from DNS in October 2014. Projects in UK waters represent the largest share, followed by Norway.

Currently, 88 North Sea installations have been decommissioned, representing 12% of all installations, according to the report.

The ECITB works closely with Government and employers to attract, develop and qualify personnel. ECITB invests a total £20 million each year, providing advice and training grants to employers in order to attract, develop and qualify personnel. It also sets industry standards for competence and health and safety.

In addition, DNS and ECITB are working on the development of an Offshore Decommissioning Skills Development Plan, which is still in a planning stage.

“We look forward to working together to develop new industry-wide solutions that meet the long-term skills requirements of the oil and gas industry,” said Andy Brown, director of regional operations for the ECITB.

As reported by the Activity Survey 2015 from Oil & Gas UK, decommissioning amounted to £1 billion in 2014, some 4% of total UKCS expenditure.

Decommissioning expenditure is expected to rise sharply over the next five years to over £2 billion in 2018, the report said.

According to DNS, over 5,500 wells, 400 facilities and 10,000 km of pipelines are expected to be decommissioned in the North Sea by 2050, reaching an aggregate estimated cost of more than £50 billion.

Decommissioning constitutes an “excellent opportunity for specialization and international competiveness of the UK supply chain”, and could have a significant impact on national employment, DNS said.

DNS identifies the North Sea decommissioning industry as a nascent market, with a shortage in sufficiently experienced resources to meet future demand.

According to a 2014 report by OPITO, a skills organization in the oil and gas sector, 33% of businesses in the upstream oil and gas sector have difficulties in filling roles, particularly for design engineers, marine crew, mechanical engineers, CAD designers and draught people.