THE North Sea oil and gas industry needs to highlight its successes at every opportunity to help to attract top talent, a business gathering was told last night.
John Forrest, UK vice-president at Talisman Energy (UK), added that the potential for scholarship support should form a key part of the sales pitch to students who are contemplating a career in oil and gas.
His message was delivered at Aberdeen Art Gallery as Talisman and Wood Group welcomed a new batch of recruits for their annual scholarship programmes.
Mr Forrest said he believed support for key disciplines was starting to bear fruit, a message that was reinforced by 23 students being honoured in the presence of their families and friends, senior bosses from Talisman and Wood, and representatives from the two Aberdeen universities.
Launched in 2006, Talisman’s £800,000 10-year funding package for the Robert Gordon (RGU) and Aberdeen universities has already supported more than 70 students in engineering, geosciences and business.
Mr Forrest said: “We have a tremendous tale to tell about the North Sea oil and gas business.
“It is Britain’s biggest post-war industrial success story and repeating that message at every opportunity can only help to attract the brightest young minds to study subjects vital to the continued success of Talisman and others like us.
“The future of our industry in the UK and farther afield lies with these young people and others who are still considering their career options. Financial and mentoring support offered by scholarships play a big part in making the oil and gas industry an attractive option.”
Talisman’s new RGU scholars are Dorothy Esson, Stuart Lamb, Katie Moir, Victoria Mutch and Paul Nowland.
Aberdeen University students receiving Talisman scholarships in 2009 include Ian Clark, Misha Khan, Jade Leask, Kim Littlejohn, Liam Malone, Steven Miskelly, Evrard Missakidi, Oliver Rae, Joanna Russell, Natalie Salter, Hollie Struthers, Mazhar Uddin, Nico Wares and Nathan Young.
Wood Group’s scholarship programme is supporting RGU students Steven Bain, James Cheng, Christopher Dodds and Malcolm Smith.
Wood Group chief executive Allister Langlands said: “Our investment is a key element of our recruitment strategy to build strong links with engineering students early in their studies, offer work placements to allow them to engage in practical engineering challenges and put theory into practice whilst learning in a mentored environment.”
Wood Group also offers scholarships in Dubai via Heriot-Watt University, plus the Kazakh-British Technical University, at Almaty, in Kazakhstan.