Jobs NEWS

Oil prices in Alaska have surged to their highest levels in a decade. But job numbers in the oil and gas industry have barely budged upward after they crashed during the COVID-19 pandemic, even as other sectors of the economy enjoy a solid rebound. Industry observers in Alaska give several reasons for the tepid job growth in the oil patch. They say it mirrors a trend in the industry nationally, a slow recovery that breaks from past practice. Companies, increasingly flush with cash, aren’t investing in oil field activity like they once did when the good times rolled. They say companies are now more likely to question big, long-term projects, as investors raise concerns about the industry’s past performance and new regulations that could result from climate change policies.

The lockdown in India led to hundreds of thousands of workers in cities returning to their hometowns. With most jobs concentrated in urban regions, their exodus highlighted the precarious employment situation for millions in rural India. Even before the pandemic, jobs were a challenge. In 2019, the unemployment rate in India was the highest in 47 years.

The Scottish renewable sector supports 22,660 jobs, a new report finds. The research from the University of Strathclyde’s Fraser of Allander Institute shows that onshore wind is the biggest renewables employer in Scotland, recording employment of 8,780 people. That is followed by offshore wind with 4,700 jobs and hydropower with 3,290.

Equinor is set to cut jobs significantly in the United States, Canada and Britain to compensate to a fall in oil prices They plan to cut employee numbers in those countries by about 20% and contractor numbers by around half. Equinor will also not drill any new unconventional wells this year in the United States, where it has claims in the Bakken and Marcellus shale formations.

Oil & Gas UK has estimated a significant drop in production revenue from the UK Continental Shelf. It has also predicted that the UK oil and gas industry might lose as many as 30,000 jobs over the next 12–18 months. The industry trade body commented, "The outlook is bleak compared to the picture of steady growth seen only two months ago, before the grip of the pandemic became clear”.

Brandon Grosvenor has assumed office as the new V.P. of strategic development for the Americas region by OPITO. This global, not-for-profit skills body for the energy industry, trains more than 350,000 people per year with strong workforce development initiatives. Brandon has to his credit the implementation of numerous training programs in various roles within the global training firm.

India's leading manpower outsourcing firm, Aarvi Encon, has signed a contract to provide 2,000 engineers to oil companies. Multiple private firms and a large PSU are the companies included in the contract. ED of Aarvi said, "these 2,000 trained engineers will be provided by us to oil companies to work on BS-VI projects and refinery expansion projects”. BS-VI fuel was rolled out in April 2018 in the national capital.

On Monday, Shell Companies in India Chairman, Nitin Prasad, informed that in the next ten years, the company will open 1,200 retail stations in India. He gave the people of the industry a hope by saying that "each one of those stations can easily accommodate about 100 workers. Simply put, one lakh jobs will get created". Presently, Shell has put over 120 retail stations across India.

After reporting a huge profit of $1.6 billion in its recent quarter, ConocoPhillips is looking forward to “modest” job cuts in Houston and all over US. Reportedly, the company is focusing more on share buybacks and debt reduction in order to strengthen the support from its investors. A spokeswoman said that the employees have been informed about the workforce reduction that will take place in mid-September.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) has shown disappointment from US administration denial to exclude imported steel to be used in certain parts of oil and gas industry, from Section 232 tariffs. API VP believes that the process which decided whether to grant exclusion or not lacks transparency. The association has said that the decision is misguided and will impact American energy production and jobs.

BP Plc, the British oil major, is committed to further develop its upstream opportunities whereby, it intends to cut down 3 percent jobs in exploration and production by the end of the year. The objective is to restructure its international upstream business to bring in more efficiency and competitiveness. BP revealed in a statement that the ongoing process will simplify the company’s structure and make it more efficient.

Reuters revealed in a report that Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) has signed a contract with Artelia, the French consultancy and engineering group. The agreement has been signed to manage the development of the firm’s new headquarters in the eastern city of Benghazi.

New economic studies reckon that opening up the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) to safe and responsible offshore oil and natural gas development would be a great economic catalyst which shall help promote US jobs, attract investments and enhance the tax revenues for states across the nation. The US economy could witness energy renaissance as the oil and gas industry is a major contributor the country’s evolution and growth.