Western Australia is not the cure for all of the North Sea’s economic woes, but there are plenty of opportunities to be had in its offshore gas market, officials said yesterday.
John Atkins, agent general for the Government of Western Australia in London, said North Sea experts would continue to be needed as the country’s gas projects progress from construction into the operations and maintenance phase.
Mr Atkins also said the oil price downturn had not hit Western Australia quite as hard as the north-east of Scotland, though there had been job losses and an efficiency drive.
He said the region’s main industry, mining, had fared the worst as iron ore prices fell about 18 months before crude plummeted.
Mr Atkins also said a number of multi-billion dollar LNG projects were under construction on the North West Shelf as Australia looks to satisfy demand from Indo-China, which is expect to grow rapidly over the coming decades.
But there have been setbacks, including delays to Woodside Petroleum LNG projects, and BP’s decision not to drill for oil in the Great Australian Bight, off the south coast.
“We’ve had a shakeout in our mining sector so we understand the pain this causes, but the impact of the low oil price has not been as severe,” Mr Atkins said.
“But it’s not all been plain sailing. We’re not the panacea for all that’s happened in Aberdeen.”
Mr Atkins was speaking at the inaugural Aberdeen-Perth Western Australia Gateway, a function aimed at highlighting opportunities for collaboration between organisations in both cities.
The event, organised by Granite PR, was attended by about 80 people at the Macdonald Norwood Hall Hotel in Aberdeen.
Mr Atkins added: “People in Scotland are prepared to have a crack at things and Western Australians are very similar. I’m sure we can do some great things together.”
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