Opinion: Patent pooling can drive down renewable costs
The renewable energy industry continues to grow in Scotland, but not all companies are fully exploiting the opportunities for protecting and commercialising their innovation.
Insights
Re-thinking the often troublesome audit process
Whether it is imposed upon a company externally or driven from within an organisation, audit - that ubiquitous marker of corporate performance - is often a troublesome process.
Where are the Big Boys? Will we ever get the message and build the stuff?
I'm quite sure that like me most Energy readers will have been following or are at least aware of the takeover battle between the UK/Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca and its US rival Pfizer with the latter being the "aggressor".
The long road from Dundee to the Western Isles
Dundee is the latest location to notice the chasm that exists between the Scottish government's rhetoric on renewable energy and the reality of what is being delivered.
Fuels game-changer . . . from seawater
Here we go again . . . All-Energy is back in Aberdeen and, hopefully, it won't suffer the meteorological battering handed out by Mother Nature last year.
New lifejacket offers a “step change in safety”
A new offshore lifejacket which doubles up as a small liferaft has been unveiled in America.
Opinion: Shale gas? What shale gas?!
As tensions keep growing in Eastern Ukraine and along the Russian border, so do possible threats on energy supplies and a stable diplomacy between Russia and the West. The G7’s leaders have now invited Putin to stay on this club’s doorstep. It has been a while since the Kremlin had been so staunchly ostracized in diplomatic circles. Evidently, GazPutin could not care less and he has got strong reasons to think so.
Information – the undervalued safety asset
Through my studies of disaster inquiries such as Piper Alpha, Texas City, and Macondo, it’s become clear that an organisation's information is equally as valuable as its tangible assets. Whereas poor IM can ripple throughout an organisation, causing it to haemorrhage intelligence through conflicting and contradictory data, effective IM can tie together an organisation’s knowledge in one authoritative set, helping to mitigate risks and enabling greater organisational safety.
Jeremy Cresswell’s take on the departure of Geoff Holmes
It seems that the sudden departure of Geoff Holmes from the top slot at Talisman Sinopec here in Aberdeen has set tongues wagging. This is partly because of what is not said in the tersely worded statement by the company shoved out to the media yesterday
New RGC centre aims to bridge the talent gap
Robert Gordon's College is looking to strengthen its profile as the key supplier of the region's "intellectual capital" as it readies to give its STEM facilities a well needed revamp.
Problems facing the oil and gas industry under ‘Yes’ vote
A leading university academic last night outlined the difficulties the oil and gas industry would face should Scotland become independent. Professor Alex Kemp, of Aberdeen University, an expert on oil economics, told an audience of more than 200 people that it would require an “extensive transitional period” to address the issues.
Opinion: ‘Equity’ must stop being an industry taboo
The word you are looking for is “equity”. Is it still a taboo subject in your organisation? It shouldn’t be.
Opinion: ‘Innovation is no longer enough’
In this industry there is a constant conversational flutter around the word ‘innovative’. It’s how we describe our products, our people and our places. And rightly so. It’s what the industry pioneers used to create the offshore landscape and the North Sea’s global reputation. It’s what cemented Aberdeen’s position as the oil capital of Europe. But now as we transition to a new era and begin discussing ‘extending the North Sea’s life’, I wonder if innovation alone is still enough? I don’t think it is.
Opinion: Industry can take its cue from the premier league
I have a confession to make. I’m not a huge football fan. But my 12-year-old daughter is a natural Mia Hamm on the field. At weekends you can usually find me on the pitch side lines with the rest of the parents, so I can’t help but be drawn in to the wider football chat.
Opinion: ‘If we can’t convince the man on site we won’t convince a judge’
“In many ways, telling people what my job is about is straightforward”, the young safety engineer told me. “Process safety, when it comes down to it, is all about keeping the harmful stuff away from where it would do harm. However, explaining what that means I do on a day-to-day basis, that’s another matter entirely…..”
Perspective from OTC: What do Aberdeen, Mexico and Perth have in common?
Long-standing relationships have been cemented at this year’s OTC Houston. The theme of collaboration was apparent when we met with new and existing partners from around the world.
CAA: Overweight oilmen get reprieve
Overweight oil and gas workers have been told they will no longer be banned from flying offshore and lose their jobs.
CAA: Deadline changes a ‘safety success story’
Regulators have backed down in a row over the introduction of new helicopter safety rules – and pledged that no offshore workers will lose their jobs for being overweight.
OTC 2014: Jeremy Cresswell’s Energy Eye – Day Three
Helicopter travel and safety do not tend to be given a lot of airtime in Houston during the Offshore Technology Conference, giving prevalence to straight-talking business and hard cash - except for this year.
OTC 2014: Aberdeen’s future as a global oil and gas player
In Houston, the Press and Journal's editor-in-chief, Damian Bates, and I chaired what we hope will be the first in a regular series of breakfast debates.
North Sea taxes not likely to rise in independent Scotland claims Chief Treasury Secretary
Chief Treasury Secretary Danny Alexander has admitted that North Sea taxes are already 'pretty high' and not likely to rise if Scotland becomes independent.
Industry leaders say safety is the real ‘winner’ in CAA rethink
New measures to improve helicopter safety for oil and gas workers have been brought forward. The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) says emergency breathing systems will now be compulsory 15 months earlier than originally planned. Helicopter operators will have to have the equipment in place from January 1, 2015 rather than April 1, 2016.
‘Majority of CAA report about prevention not survivability’
Energy Voice attended a workforce engagement day aimed at examining the implications of the Civil Aviation Authority’s report. Director of safety and airspace Mark Swan and co-chairman of the Helicopter Safety Steering Group(HSSG) Alan Chesterman were on hand to address the workforce.
Service companies set to follow Wood Group PSN’s lead for rate cuts
Oil services companies in Aberdeen are set to follow the lead of Wood Group PSN, which announced plans to slash rates it pays to contractors 10% in an effort to cut spiralling costs.
OTC 2014: Bristow on track to implement CAA measures
A top boss at Bristow, one of the North Sea’s big three helicopter operators, says the company has no issue with accepting and adopting the raft of measures that the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) plans to implement from next month.