Online job postings in the global oil and gas industry rose 39% from October 2010 to Jan 2012, according to the latest Global Job Index produced by recruiting experts Hays Oil & Gas.
The 2011 average was 28,000 per month.
It means the sector is booming, even in the North Sea where the UK suffered a serious setback due to a huge tax increase imposed in March last year.
The Index charts the number of jobs posted on nine oil & gas job portals worldwide and shows that in the most recent quarter to November 2011, jobs growth was at its highest, rising from 1.09 in August to a 1.48 November peak.
“We’ve seen a significant increase in job numbers through 2011, which confirms a buoyant oil and gas market in most regions of the globe,” said Matthew Underhill, MD at Hays Oil & Gas.
“Whilst concerns around the European debt crisis continue to weigh down labour markets in wider economies, the oil and gas recruitment market appears to be showing no sign of a slowdown.
“Allowing for monthly downswings for seasonal holidays the Index has grown consistently reflecting a busy recruitment market and in some cases demand exceeding limited supply of skills.”
Picking over the marketplace on a regional basis, growth is recorded everywhere. Even in Africa, where there have been major upheavals in Libya and Egypt, this has not killed off growth.
“The continents thriving offshore market in West Africa has continued to drive job growth,” says Underhill, who has established a family of regional indices.
Highlights:
o The Australasian Index reveals that region’s strength, where a multitude of LNG (liquefied natural gas) projects on the west coast are now being matched by equally impressive “non-conventional” projects on the east coast. The Index in Australasia stands at 1.47, reflecting in some disciplines acute skill shortages.
o The Asia Index, which now stands at 1.35, also reveals considerable gains in job numbers and is an indication that investment in local exploration and production from China, Malaysia and other regional players is creating significant demand for talent.
o Two of the traditional power houses . . . the US Gulf of Mexico and the North Sea, rebounded strongly this year, and both regions are reported to be “not far behind pre-recession boom days”. Their respective indices at 1.58 and 1.74 reflect both the high levels of demand that now exist, and also the low levels from which the markets were starting from back in October 2010.
o The Gulf of Mexico was not the only hot spot in North America. Both Canada’s oil sands and non-conventional plays in shale and coal seam gas across the continent “added to a job-rich environment”, which saw the index for North America peak at just under 2.00.
o In South America the index peaked to 1.16 in November, however the journey has been somewhat less than consistent. But Hays insists that this should not be misconstrued as a lack of activity since the market was already “red hot” in 2010, particularly in Brazil.
o The Middle East’s job index grew healthily from October 2010 through to the middle of 2011. Since this time the market has maintained a high level of activity with the index for the Middle East maintaining its level of 1.3.
o The Hay’s index was initiated in October 2010 when the index was set at 1.00 against which all subsequent months are then compared.
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