More than 60 people gathered in Aberdeen yesterday to discuss international opportunities for north-east oil and gas firms.
The seminar, hosted by accountant Johnston Carmichael at the Hilton Aberdeen Tree Tops hotel, featured speakers with first-hand experience of the energy sector in Russia’s Sakhalin island, Azerbaijan and Brazil.
It focused on how companies in the north-east could use their experience to tap into the worldwide oil and gas industry.
Callum Wilson, a tax partner at Johnston Carmichael, said: “There are huge opportunities in the likes of Sakhalin and Brazil. The difficulties of getting oil and gas out of the ground are more than familiar to us in this part of the world, and we can share that expertise. It is all about planning and investing the time to find out what is out there.”
Jane Gotts, international director at the Scottish Council for Development and Industry, was among the speakers.
She said Brazil would be a key market for Scottish firms in a range of sectors in the coming years.
Ms Gotts added: “The energy market is really driving Brazil’s economic growth but there will also be significant opportunities arising from the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016.
“There is a growing middle class in Brazil – 19million millionaires are created every day there – so demand for luxury items is on the rise. That is where Scotland can make its mark with products like cashmere and whisky.”