Port Skills and Safety (PSS) and Scottish tech firm COMET, in collaboration, are pleased to announce the launch of a new initiative designed to further improve safety performance and data intelligence that drives better safety and standards across the port industry. This initiative combines COMET’s software and port industry services with PSS’s deep industry expertise and membership to provide practical solutions tailored to the unique challenges faced by port operators and their supply chains today.

PSS members will benefit from free access to COMET’s Incident Investigation & Root Cause Analysis platform, a solution designed to bring both rigor and proportionality to managing everything from minor slips and trips to more significant incidents and non-conformances. These incentivised offerings, which also include HSE Culture Assessments and Behavioural Training Programmes, are...

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French oil major, TotalEnergies, has proceeded with plans to shut down its FPSO, Gryphon, in the North Sea.

Decommissioning of the Gryphon, the first purpose-built FPSO installed on its North Sea site in 1993, had been planned by TotalEnergies since 2023. However, those in opposition to the move, notably Nobel Upstream which owns two oil fields tied back to the FPSO, have blamed the North Sea windfall tax, officially the Energy Profits Levy, first introduced by the UK Government in May 2022.

From 25%, the windfall tax has climbed steadily and now...

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By Dr Ollie Folayan MBE, Co-Chair of AFBE-UK Scotland

Engineering thrives on innovation, yet its workforce continues to fall short in reflecting the diversity of society.

Ethnic minorities continue to be underrepresented in the UK engineering workforce, comprising just 12.4% in 2023, compared to 16% across all other occupations. This disparity exists even though 31% of undergraduate entrants to engineering and technology degrees were from minority ethnic backgrounds, a higher proportion than the 28% average across all subjects. Similarly, apprenticeship data shows that 14% of starts in engineering and technology-related apprenticeships in 2023/24 were by individuals from a UK minority ethnic background. These statistics highlight ongoing challenges in translating higher education and apprenticeship participation into representation within the engineering workforce. (*EngineeringUK Report).

This imbalance not only represents a missed opportunity for fairness but also for innovation and excellence. By failing to capitalise on the full breadth of talent, the sector risks falling behind in addressing complex challenges.

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Drilling at Mopane-2A reveals significant hydrocarbon presence in Namibia’s PEL 83. The PEL 83 Joint Venture partners have revealed an additional oil and gas condensate discovery in the Mopane field in Namibia’s Orange Basin.

The Mopane field is estimated to hold more than ten billion barrels of oil.

Also known as Well #4, the Mopane-2A well was spud [drilling operations commenced there] on 2 December 2024 and has encountered hydrocarbons in two separate reservoirs.

The well is part of Petroleum Exploration License 83 (PEL 83) which covers blocks 2813A and 2814B and is operated by a subsidiary of...

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Energy Industries Council, the world-leading energy trade association, named three experienced professionals to the Company’s Board of Directors. With strong, complementary backgrounds across Project Logistics, Digital Transformation and Global Talent Management, EIC is further reinforced by these appointments in its commitment to driving not only innovation but, also the energy supply chain’s ability to export diversify and grow.

Commenting on the latest appointments, Stuart Broadley, CEO of the EIC, said, “We are delighted to welcome Jasmina, Ahmed, and James to the EIC Board of Directors. Their diverse backgrounds and profound knowledge of the energy sector will be instrumental in shaping the future of the EIC and...

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Ahead of a trading update on 21 January, in which the Company will provide guidance for 2025, Serica Energy plc today announces production figures for 2024.

Production into the Triton FPSO resumed on 27 December with a phased restart of the producing and new wells ongoing. Importantly, following extensive root cause analysis and remedial work, the export gas compressor was restarted successfully and gas exports commenced on 29 December.

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With just two weeks left in his term, United States President Joe Biden has signed a ban on offshore oil and gas drilling in federal waters—a move that will require an act of Congress to reverse.

Supporters hailed the ban as a capstone on Biden’s environmental legacy. Biden has “conserved more lands and waters than any other U.S. president in history,” the White House said in a news release. Critics, however, slammed the “11th-hour” action as detrimental to consumers.

But the areas barred from leasing were not of immediate interest to the oil industry and do not include active developments, Mark James, an associate...

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Australian independent Santos has been fined just A$10,000 (US$6254) over a 2022 condensate spill at its Varanus Island Marine Terminal, located off the northwest coast of Western Australia (WA), which is claimed to have killed marine mammals.

The Adelaide-headquartered company on Monday plead guilty in the Karratha Magistrates Court to a charge of “failing to operate its licensed pipeline in a proper and workmanlike manner [and] failing to prevent the escape of petroleum”.

Santos was fined A$10,000 and ordered to pay a further A$9700 in court costs, confirmed the Western Australian Department of...

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Aker BP awards ASCO contract for base services, warehousing, personnel consulting and transport

ASCO has been awarded a five-year contract until 2030 for base and logistics services for Aker BP in Tananger, Sandnessjøen, and Farsund in Norway. The agreement also includes continued services in warehouse management, load carriers, waste services, and personnel leasing for logistics and helicopter coordination.

The potential total value of the agreement is £70 million (NOK one billion) over the contract period.

Øyvind Salte, Commercial Director at ASCO Norge AS commented, “Aker BP’s continued choice of ASCO for their base and...

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Salus Technical launches Copilots: an AI service designed to enhance safety standards via higher quality, more efficient and consistent risk assessments

With many assets in the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) now well beyond their original design life, a well-documented skill shortage, and squeeze on investments, there is a recognised need to address safety challenges across the energy sector.

In response to this, Aberdeen-headquartered process-safety firm, Salus Technical, has developed Salus Copilots – a software programme service using the latest...