Industry body Offshore Energies UK (OEUK) has released its first ever documentary, which it says “shines a light on the UK workers leading the charge to net zero energy supply”.
Produced in partnership with Scotland-based documentary maker Thomas Hogben, the documentary was launched online this week following two screening events that took place in Aberdeen and London. These events gathered “key” political stakeholders, energy producing companies, trade unions and members of the workforce, OEUK highlighted.
The film takes viewers on a journey into the energy communities of the UK, giving an insight into the personal lives of those trying to decarbonize the oil and gas industry as well as expanding into wind, hydrogen and carbon capture and storage, OEUK noted. The documentary also explores some of the steps already being taken by the sector to reduce its own emissions and decarbonize the UK’s infrastructure, the organization pointed out.
“This film shows the real people working day in and day out to transform the UK’s energy system,” Alix Thom, OEUK’s Workforce Engagement Manager, said in a statement that was sent to Rigzone.
“They are great examples of the sector’s stars, addressing the biggest challenges facing society today by applying their ingenuity, commitment and conviction,” Thom added in the statement.
“We hope that this film demonstrates the diverse range of talent we have working in energy, and the broad range of fascinating roles available,” Thom continued.
In the documentary, OEUK’s former CEO, Deirdre Michie, said, “we have to transition and we have to have a plan of how we transition”.
“I think we as an industry can demonstrate some real, tangible, positive progress, in relation to where we are and where we’re heading,” Michie added.
OEUK’s Director of Sustainability, Mike Tholen, said in the documentary, “on the journey to net zero, we face some really exciting opportunities, not just for individuals, but right across society”.
“We have a whole new generation of employment ahead of us, where people can build careers, based not just on their oil and gas heritage, but also in renewable power, making the most of the North Sea,” he added.
“An energy revolution ahead of us, in a way that we’re only just now beginning to wrestle with,” he continued.
When Rigzone asked the Scottish government for comment on OEUK’s documentary, a Scottish government spokesperson said, “energy underpins every part of our economy, and our energy industry itself is part of Scotland’s national identity”.
“It will also play a fundamental role in our net zero transformation, and the energy sector’s highly skilled workforce, who have long been at the forefront of energy innovation, have an important role to play in Scotland’s energy transition,” the spokesperson added.
“Our draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan, published earlier this month, sets out a very clear vision to capitalize on the enormous opportunities that a net zero energy system offers the industry, our economy and our climate. We remain fully supportive of the oil and gas sector’s decarbonization efforts, with initiatives such as the INTOG leasing round presents significant opportunities to cut emissions across oil and gas operations while, crucially, enabling the offshore wind sector to expand, innovate and drive forward Scotland’s ambition to be a renewables powerhouse,” the spokesperson continued.
Rigzone has also contacted the UK government as well as the GMB, Unite and RMT trade unions for comment on OEUK’s documentary. At the time of writing, Rigzone has not yet received any statements from these groups about the film.
Job Figures Past, Present and Future
In its latest workforce insight report, OEUK forecasts that the offshore oil and gas sector will support 213,600 jobs this year when direct, indirect and induced jobs are taken into consideration.
This figure stood at 200,800 in 2021, 178,500 in 2020, and 260,900 in 2019, OEUK’s latest report showed. A breakdown of the total direct, indirect, and induced jobs for 2019-2022, as shown in the report, can be seen below:
A UK Offshore Energy Workforce Transferability Review by Robert Gordon University released back in 2021 outlined that the offshore energy workforce mix will change significantly in the next 10 years, with roles in decarbonized energies projected to increase from 20 percent to 65 percent of all jobs in the offshore energy sector.
The review indicated that over 90 percent of the UK’s oil and gas workforce have “medium to high skills transferability” and are “well positioned” to work in adjacent energy sectors, the RGU noted.
“This review highlights the material prize for the UK,” Paul de Leeuw, the Director of the Energy Transition Institute at RGU, and the review’s lead author, said in an RGU statement at the time.
“Successful delivery of the UK and the devolved governments’ energy transition ambitions has the opportunity to secure around 200,000 jobs in 2030 for the offshore energy workforce,” he added.
“With the overall number of jobs in the UK oil and gas industry projected to decline over time, the degree of transferability of jobs to adjacent energy sectors such as offshore wind, carbon capture and storage, hydrogen or other industrial sectors will be key to ensuring the UK retains its world class skills and capabilities,” de Leeuw continued.
In March 2021, the UK government vowed that high-skilled oil and gas workers and the supply chain will not be left behind in the transition to a low carbon future as it agreed a North Sea Transition Deal with the industry.
Commenting on the deal at the time, the then chief executive of Oil & Gas UK (now OEUK), Michie, said, “the North Sea Transition Deal is a transformative partnership which will harness the expertise of the UK offshore oil and gas industry to urgently meet the country’s climate ambitions of net zero emissions by 2050”.
To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com
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