Jim House, CEO of Neptune Energy, said today at Oil and Gas UK’s Business Outlook breakfast that he “didn’t expect to be back so quickly”; a sign that a North Sea oil recovery is in full swing.
Departing Aberdeen in August 2015 due to the downturn in oil price, Mr House described his return to present Neptune Energy’s continued commitment to Northern European fields as “a new beginning” for the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS).
Speaking to an audience of almost 400 people from the oil and gas sector, Mr House said that he was pleased with what the industry has been able to accomplish over the last few years.
He said: “As soon as you think you understand the road ahead things do change. This industry has been given another chance and you largely made it happen on your own.”
With Northern Europe accounting for 90% of Neptune Energy’s production and yielding 154,000 BOEPD, Mr House said that “there has been a tremendous amount of heartache and pain” and that the industry has had to “weather a pretty bad storm” but that it “ought to be proud of what it has accomplished.”
Speaking after the event, Mr House said: “To be able to reform and go through the tough measures that the industry has had to put in place in the last three years is nothing short of remarkable. It’s given a new lease of life and a new outlook to the North Sea, and the UKCS in particular.
“The big question is: will the industry be able to preserve these gains and not let competitive, collective behaviours emerge again. The UKCS has got to capitalise on the gains its seen in the last few years.”
Asked about the effect of collaboration on recovery in the North Sea, Mr House said: “What is collaboration; it’s not just getting together to talk its coming together and coming up with real solutions, making decisions and coming up with objectives. The results speak for themselves.”
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