Oonagh Werngren, Oil & Gas UK’s operations director, said: “Throughout the first half of 2014, it was clear that well services contractors continued to benefit from the high level of investment in the UK continental shelf (UKCS) which occurred in 2013. In the latter half of 2014, however, a number of companies reported a slow-down in the demand for their services and expect this trend to continue in 2015, with respondents predicting that the oil price fall will have a negative impact on drilling activity.”
The report confirms that along with the rest of the UK oil and gas industry, well services contractors face a challenging business environment and therefore recruited fewer staff during 2014. However, the sector highlighted its intention to encourage broader commitment to shared industry tools including standard contracts which would contribute to the industry’s cost and efficiency efforts and help both operators and supply chain companies become more competitive.