Almost 7000 visits were made to this week's Subsea Expo - Europe’s largest subsea event, held in Aberdeen, despite the industry facing its toughest year ever.
The exhibition and conference, organized by Subsea UK, attracted just under 5000 individual delegates, many of whom visited more than once over the three days. International delegates flew in from all corners of the world, including Africa, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria and the US.
Chief executive of Subsea UK, Neil Gordon, said: “A clear message from the show was that we have to get fit for US$30 oil. We cannot keep hoping that the price, and therefore investment and activity, will pick up in a year or so. Transforming the way we work is crucial.
"A large dose of vision and courage from the leaders in our industry is needed to achieve the behavioral changes that will ensure we are profitable and sustainable at $30. The good news is that we can do this but it’s not going to be easy. Much greater collaboration will drive standardization and simplification which are key to getting the cost base down. The subsea sector is up for the challenge and there was real evidence of this type of collaboration in action during Subsea Expo.”
The show, which is in its eleventh year, hosted several first-time exhibitors this year, including ABB, AISUS Offshore, EC-OG, Iqarus and CENSIS. OE spoke to ABB's John Guthrie earlier this week. Read more here.
Stuart Lawson, managing director of AISUS Offshore said: “This highly focused event has generated huge interest in our inspection technology. It’s been a great opportunity to engage with the industry to look at ways in which we can work together to satisfy the rigorous demands of the oil and gas sector in the current climate. The atmosphere was encouragingly upbeat - it was clear that there is a real determination to ride out the current crisis by focusing on delivering cost effective solutions which will bring real value to the industry.”
Tim Mitchell, CEO of Iqarus said: “Participating in Subsea Expo has been hugely beneficial to us; we’ve been able to meet with international delegates and showcase our new brand proposition. It’s shown that despite the low oil price, there is still plenty of engagement in the industry. The show provided an excellent opportunity to announce our acquisition strategy and our new environmental sciences capability.”
Image: Lucky OE prize draw winners Georgina Williams-Hodgson, from Royal IHC, and Barry Clough, from Trelleborg, pictured, walked away with a 40th anniversary special edition OE Monopoly, presented by Europe editor Elaine Maslin. Get yours here.
A number of companies launched technology at the show. Xodus unveiled its new asset lifecycle screening tool HAWXEYE at the event. STATS Group revealed a new flangeless subsea launcher. Hydratight unveiled details of its riser cleaning and inspection tool, RCIT and Ashtead Technology outlined a new approach to the installation and integrity management of subsea systems.
Contracts were also announced, including Subea 7's three-year frame agreement with a string of six North Sea operators and Allspeeds supplier AKOFS with its Webtool emergency disconnet tools. New investment was also announced, including Seanamics revealing investment in its Umbilicals International facility in Glasgow and plans for a new lay-up facility in the US and JDR Cable Systems discusing its plans for growth at its Hartlepool facility.
The conference program was also packed with high profile industry speakers delivering leadership messages on the themes of transformation, maximizing global opportunities, key projects around the world, standardization and technology R&D.
The day one plenary heard about some of the challenges for the industry, which is "facing its toughest year yet," as well as a bid to unlock the 1.6 billion boe of reserves sat locked in stranded "small pools."
The technical sessions and technology spotlight boasted a host of insightful sessions on integrity management, pipelines, ROV inspection and field development.
Ernie Lamza, Oil & Gas Innovation Centre chief operating officer, said: “The quality of technical discussion at Subsea Expo has been exceptionally high this year. The subsea sector is clearly focused on the strategic challenges facing exploration and production in the North Sea and internationally. Key themes at this year’s Subsea Expo have included cost reduction through technology and process enhancements, opportunities for standardization and small pool development. Everyone we have spoken to has been interested in taking research and development projects forward within the subsea industry and there is clearly an appetite for innovation from businesses and operating companies.”
The industry also celebrated its best and brightest at the Subsea Awards, with Aker Solutions picking up company of the year and David Bloom, global business development manager for Subsea 7, scooping the outstanding contribution award.
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