Aberdeen is a ‘difficult market to recruit in’ as wind projects are pushed back

“Aberdeen is quite a difficult market to recruit in,” Gary Yeoman sales director at Balmoral Comtec said while at the Granite City’s Energy Exports Conference.

He says the difficulty comes from “growth in the market” both in oil and gas and in renewables.

However, with offshore wind projects facing delays and “slipping further back”, Mr Yeoman said his firm is having to focus its recruitment efforts on oil and gas for now.

In recent years the renewables sector has experienced supply chain constraints, cost inflation and a lack of government support.

Last year’s Allocation Round 5 (AR5) failed to secure any bids for offshore wind in the Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction round.

Scottish Renewables, Renewable UK and Energy UK said in July 2023, a few months before the results of AR5 were announced, that the industry’s capacity to invest was being “eroded”.

© Supplied by Balmoral

Since the shortcomings of AR5, the UK government has adjusted the budget for the next allocation round to support the country’s offshore wind sector.

Speaking to Energy Voice, Mr Yeoman said: “We need to take in some graduates, perhaps focus on oil and gas short term, allow them to develop and get some experience to allow the easy transition over into floating wind when the market allows us to do so.

“As I say, some of these offshore wind projects are slipping further back so we really need to take in oil and gas people now, train them up – young graduates- give them the experience to make that transition a lot easier.”

Balmoral Comtec aims to continue creating jobs

Despite competing in a “difficult” job market, Aberdeen’s Balmoral Comtec has been recruiting within the city.

The business reported in April that it had received a multi-million-pound contract for the supply of cable protection systems (CPS) by Orsted for its major Hornsea 3 project.

Also in April, Balmoral Comtec secured a multi-million-pound contract on the Rosebank oilfield, a move that it said would create more than 50 jobs in Aberdeen.

“We need to maintain our growth to maintain the jobs that we currently have in Aberdeen,” the north-east business’ sales director explained.

He continued: “We are heavily recruiting just now, Aberdeen is quite a difficult market to recruit in. We’ve opened an office in Glasgow that’s enabled us to tap into the central belt resource for engineers, for example.

“We are desperately keen to recruit more engineers, in particular, project management staff into the business. We are growing and people are the key to that growth.”

Possible overseas expansion for Balmoral Comtec

During a panel discussion at the Energy Industries Council’s Energy Exports Conference, Mr Yeoman pointed to overseas markets that are of interest to his firm.

The United States was named alongside Taiwan as a place that presents opportunities for Balmoral Comtec.

As contracts show up abroad, the Aberdeen business continues to assess the viability of setting up shop in some of these countries.

Yeoman explained: “It is all down to the timing of the projects, we’ve identified a number of key areas.

“We’re currently supplying a number of projects in Taiwan, it might well be that we require some local content to give us a competitive edge in these areas.”

Currently, the Balmoral Group has bases in Scotland, the US, Canada, Brazil, India, Malaysia, and Singapore.

Mr Yeoman concluded: “We have our internationalisation team looking at all of these areas, so I wouldn’t rule out any location.”