2H Offshore, an Acteon company, has been appointed by Weatherford Secure Drilling® services to manage the design and delivery of the riser equipment for its Managed Pressure Drilling (MPD) system.

The project award follows a successful feasibility study carried out by 2H Offshore, which outlined multiple integrated concepts for the system. 2H's scope of work now includes the development and delivery of MPD riser stack equipment for the next two generations of Weatherford's MPD systems for offshore applications.

Despite the success that has been achieved using MPD offshore to date, there are still some challenges with the ability of offshore, particularly deepwater, rigs to accommodate MPD technologies. Weatherford is developing a fully integrated MPD solution that can be easily incorporated into nearly any deepwater drilling vessel, improving the adaptability and implementation for deepwater MPD systems.

Weatherford and 2H Offshore are working to ensure that the systems meet the new regulations currently being adopted by Det Norske Veritas (DNV) Drill Class N and the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) CDS Certification.

"Weatherford has recognized that 2H is a leader in system integration and delivery management. This along with our expertise with riser systems has led them to partner with us to meet the demands of their customers and of the industry," said Mark Nolet, project manager at 2H Offshore. "The 2H team in Houston is extremely excited about assisting Weatherford Secure Drilling Services in developing its next generation of managed pressure drilling."

The next generation of Weatherford's MPD system is expected to be delivered in 2015.

Bechtel has been selected by Louisiana LNG Energy, LLC to provide front-end engineering and design for a new midscale liquefaction facility and export terminal in Louisiana, south of New Orleans on the Mississippi River. The design will center on a modular approach, which shortens the construction schedule and accommodates future expansion.

"Bechtel brings world-class expertise in the engineering, design, and construction of LNG liquefaction projects coupled with leadership in modularization and Gulf Coast self-perform work," said Jim Lindsay, chief executive officer of Louisiana LNG Energy.

"This is an exciting project that will harness the region's energy potential," said Jack Futcher, president of Bechtel's Oil, Gas & Chemicals business unit. "We will apply our extensive project delivery experience to provide Louisiana LNG Energy the most efficient design for fast-track construction of the facility. We look forward to working with them."

The new facility will have an initial export capacity of 2 million metric tons per annum of liquefied gas and will use Chart Energy and Chemicals' proprietary liquefaction technology. The export terminal will be positioned to serve large liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers. Completion of the project is expected in late 2017.

Bechtel is the global leader in the LNG industry. The company is responsible for a third of LNG liquefaction capacity under construction today, including four projects in Australia and the first LNG export facility in the United States.

Seagull Maritime AS has launched Seagull Training Administrator 4.0, an updated version of the shipping industry's most widely used training administrator, in a move the company says makes computer-based packages even easier to use.

Norway-based Seagull Maritime has built on customer feedback gathered over a number of years to extend and improve STA 4.0's user workflow and functionality, and to add new functions, with the entire overhaul neatly presented via a new user interface. As with previous versions, STA 4.0 is available to seafarers onboard ship and over the Worldwide Web.

"STA 4.0 is certainly a logical advance from the technical point of view in line with market expectations, but its availability also brings immediate benefits for our end-users," says Roger Ringstad, Managing Director, Seagull Maritime AS. (photo)

"Web-based solutions take e-learning, assessments, experience tracking and administration of each seafarers records to a new level. Ensuring that individual knowledge gaps are identified and closed in a systematic way is vital for the industry. The performance evaluations, ability- and knowledge tests, available through the system give the industry certainty that they develop the 'right' seafarers for the tasks ahead.

"With training records and profiles for every position and crew member onboard available at the point of need, the training manager can simply log in to access training results from any location."

STA 4.0 benefits from an updated, more intuitive graphical user interface, designed to improve workflow. Individual customers can set up their networks within their own infrastructure by simply installing STA 4.0 on a network server, so that crew can access their train¬ing and records through a web browser on any computer con¬nected to the network.

"Our popular Crew Evaluation System (CES) is also now available onboard ship, to be used as a part of the promotion pro¬cess," adds Ringstad. "Performance Profiling is now fully integrated with STA 4.0, enabling sign-on and sign-off interviews to be completed in an easy way on board."

Other progressive features include a new Document Manager, allowing authorized personnel to export scanned documents such as course diplomas, certificates etc. to vessels. Specific vessels and ranks can also be 'tagged' by levels of competence, while individual records can be searched for crew members who have identified themselves as "ready to be assessed".

In addition, the STA 4.0 Electronic Bulletin Board enables owners to communicate messages of specific importance to seafarers and receive confirmation that messages have been received, read and understood.

"The new Training Administrator is also prepared to run all 3rd party e-learning content both online and offline (typical onboard vessels). This is a strong benefit as we can then support our clients, which are using training material from several sources including in-house developed e-learning content", says Ringstad.

Seagull Maritime is also developing the next generation cloud-based interface standard that will allow its customers to integrate their HR systems with Seagull's own. "This will be a much more flexible solution than the existing interface standard used by many customers today," says Ringstad.

Gulf Marine Services (LSE:GMS), the leading provider of advanced self-propelled self-elevating support vessels (SESV) serving the offshore oil, gas and renewable energy sectors, is pleased to announce the first contract award for its new enhanced Small Class vessel (the Pepper).

The vessel, which is currently being built by a third party, is expected to be delivered to GMS in Q1 2015 on a finance lease and will then proceed directly to its first charter for a national oil company in the MENA region. The contract is for five years (three years firm with a two-year option), with the day rate in line with that previously indicated for this enhanced class vessel in the region.

Duncan Anderson, Chief Executive Officer of GMS, said:

"It is particularly pleasing to have secured this first long-term contract for Pepper in the MENA region where demand for our SESVs is excellent. All seven of our existing Small Class vessels are chartered to clients who are very familiar with the cost-effective advantages our assets bring to brownfield maintenance, well intervention and enhanced oil recovery operations. We are looking forward to taking delivery of the new enhanced Small Class vessel with its additional deck load and area, which will add further value to the Group's offering to the client."

First delivery of Damen ASD Tug 2810, ARC Towage signed four contracts total in Barcelona, Spain

On 31 July 2013, ARC Towage singed four contracts at the Netherlands shipbuilder Damen Shipyards Group. The new building contracts with ARC Towage are the result of a special joint venture set-up for the terminal berthing services for a significant energy industry player in Trinidad and Tobago.

The first DAMEN ASD 2810 left for Trinidad, while the second vessel will leave in two weeks. The last two tugs will arrive mid-December this year. The tugs are being built at Damen Shipyards Galati, Romania, and will be delivered by Damen Services in Trinidad and Tobago before 1 January 2015. The vessels will provide towage services for escorting, berthing and un-berthing LNG-vessels.

Exterior explosion-proof lighting
The ASD Tugs 2810 have a minimal bollard pull of 60 tons and a maximum speed of 12.9 knots. For operation in and around the LNG terminal, the vessels are equipped with rig savers on all engines which are remote shut off valves, remote-closing air intakes, gas detection systems and exterior explosion-proof lighting.

Ballast water treatment (BWT) specialist Optimarin has established itself as "the supplier of choice" for offshore vessels, with over 50% of its system orders now placed for PSVs, AHTS and associated, advanced service vessels. According to CEO Tore Andersen, the last six months alone have seen 16 new agreements signed, pushing the number of offshore system orders beyond the 160-unit mark.

Norway's Golden Energy Offshore is the latest firm to opt for Optimarin's market proven system, with units ordered for two ULSTEIN designed PX121H PSVs currently under construction at the Nantong Rainbow yard in China. This agreement mirrors recent contracts with Gulf Offshore (three vessels), EMAS (four vessels) and Island Offshore, for two advanced OSVs from Vard Braila in Romania.

"We secured our first offshore order in 2008 and carried out the market's first ever offshore retrofit in 2009, onboard the MV North Mariner" comments Andersen. "So we've spent years developing our expertise in a sector defined by its specialist vessels, high utilization rates, and intense competition.

"It's a unique environment, with unique demands," he continues, "and suppliers that don't appreciate that won't prosper. With this recent surge of orders I believe we're seeing our investment, experience and sector understanding really pay off."

Optimarin's simple, flexible and reliable BWT solution is favored by offshore operators and yards for its space saving nature and low maintenance requirements, minimizing operational downtime. Its modular nature ensures it can be installed within the tight constraints of any offshore vessel – with components housed in, for example, pump rooms or between cargo tanks – while the sole UV lamp most Optimarin offshore-optimized systems require compares favorably to the multiple lamps (sometimes up to 15) employed by competing solutions.

"In some ways it's a case of less is more in this market," Andersen explains. "The less components, the less replacement parts you need and the less that can go wrong. But, in addition, these vessels don't undertake regular ballasting and, when they do, their complex cargo offloading duties mean they have significant time to perform the procedure. So, they don't need large pumps and high capacity systems and we can downscale our solution to offer them optimal efficiency, price and performance.

"That solutions-orientated approach demonstrates our understanding of their requirements."

Alongside its BWT technology, Optimarin has put equal emphasis on building lasting relationships with key yards, both at home in Norway – such as Vard Langstein, Vard Brevik and Ulstein – and further afield, like Damen of the Netherlands, where eight units were supplied in 2012/2013 for state-of-the-art newbuild World Wide Supply PSVs.

"We get perhaps 90% of newbuild business through the yards," Andersen notes, "so it pays to have excellent working relationships. A recent collaboration with Vard epitomizes our approach, as we worked with their design office to make a new skid – very compact and sleek – for easy system installation. That shows how we'll go the extra mile to deliver optimum service and solutions."

Thanks to industry demand for advanced vessels, and an increasing adoption of DNV GL's CLEAN DESIGN classification, which necessitates BWT system installation, newbuild business is booming. Retrofit activity currently only takes up around 15% of Optimarin's offshore orderbook, but, as Andersen stresses, this is set to change:

"So far we've completed retrofits for companies of the caliber of Technip, Bourbon, Gulf Offshore and PGS," he says, "with excellent results. But there's a huge global fleet that still requires systems, perhaps up to 3000 vessels, and closer to home, we estimate that there's maybe 550 offshore ships under Norwegian ownership that will need reliable BWT systems with proven operational success.

"With our specialism and experience – Optimarin now boasts 95 offshore systems installed and in operation – we believe we can offer the market something unique, building on our now established position as the offshore BWT supplier of choice."

Optimarin's environmentally friendly system, utilizing filtration and high doses of UV irradiation to inactive marine organisms, is fully IMO and USCG approved (AMS), with certification through DNV GL, BV, RMRS and CCS. The company has received over 300 system orders for vessels up to 60,000dwt, with 180 systems now installed worldwide.

The Miami-based ocean engineering and naval architecture firm of Henderson & Associates, Inc. has merged with Sea3 Systems, Inc. to form Henderson, Hanes & Associates, a full-service engineering firm that brings a groundbreaking, holistic approach to underwater intervention and project management services to the marine industry worldwide.

The new firm, headed by Shawn Henderson, P.E. and Dan Hanes, P.E., both of South Florida, draws on the deep experience base of its founders and specializes in quick turnaround refit and repair projects that may span multiple technical disciplines and trades.

Shawn Henderson, P.E., a former Navy Diver who served active duty during the Gulf War and with over 20 years of underwater experience, has spearheaded complex, multi-faceted industrial projects around the country. In January 2014, he served as Dive Superintendent on a 5-year overhaul of an ABS classed semi-submersible drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico oil field. Dan Hanes, P.E., a graduate of Duke University, also has extensive offshore oil and gas experience as well as a unique electrical and computer systems background that includes high-level work with private firms including Motorola and PPG Chemicals. Dan managed his own engineering business for over 20 years while creating technical solutions for superyachts, offshore oil, and government agencies including the U.S. Navy.

According to Henderson, "Dan and I see a tremendous demand for the expertise and skill set our entire team brings to the table. Our capabilities with electrical systems, underwater intervention, naval architecture and structural engineering combined with over 100 years of underwater experience mean that clients are guaranteed a complete suite of services for almost any marine project imaginable. This is an exciting time for our firm and we look forward to what the future holds."

The discovery well 7319/12-1, drilled by the drilling rig Transocean Spitsbergen, proved a 15-meter gas column in the well path. Statoil estimates the volumes in Pingvin to be in the range of 30-120 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalent. The discovery is currently assessed as non-commercial.

Pingvin is the first well drilled in PL713 – a large frontier area northwest of Johan Castberg awarded in the 22nd concession round. For a discovery in this area to be commercially viable it needs to be an oil accumulation of a significant size. A gas discovery does not have commercial value at present. 

"On the positive side, it is encouraging that the first well drilled in this unexplored area has proven hydrocarbons in sandstones. This indicates that we have both a reservoir and a working hydrocarbon system in the area, and creates a good basis for further subsurface work in the licence," says Dan Tuppen, vice president exploration Barents Sea and Norwegian Sea.

Pingvin is a good example of efficient exploration performance.

"The partnership drilled Pingvin just 15 months after the acreage award. The chosen well location allowed us to clarify the hydrocarbon volume in the structure with one very efficiently executed exploration well," says Tuppen.

Exploration well 7319/12-1 is located in PL713 about 65 kilometers northwest of the Johan Castberg discovery. Statoil is operator with an interest of 40%. The partners are RN Nordic Oil AS (20%), North Energy ASA (20%) and Edison International Norway Branch (20%).

For further details on the results of exploration well 7319/12-1, please see the press release issued by the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD).

Claxton, an Acteon company, has released an infographic guide to well abandonment costs in the North Sea. Released on the eve of the Oil and Gas UK Offshore Decommissioning Conference, held annually in St Andrews, Scotland, to discuss decommissioning in the region, the infographic highlights the costs operators are facing as they plan future campaigns. Abandonment cost reduction is an area where Claxton helps operators in the North Sea and beyond, via a proven suite of rigless technology.

Claxton has significant experience in platform well abandonment and conductor recovery, having completed the world's first rigless platform well abandonment in 2003. More recently, Claxton carried out the first rigless recovery of a stuck BHA for Maersk on the Tyra East field. More than 280 conductor cutting and recovery projects have been carried out using Claxton's equipment and offshore crews, and the company has worked with Acteon sister company, OIS, to deliver pioneering multi-operator campaigns with the SWAT™ suspended well abandonment tool.

Jamie Hall, marketing communications manager, Claxton, said, "Our infographic, created from Oil and Gas UK's recent review of the North Sea market, highlights the scale of the challenge facing operators. Claxton has a long standing track record of reducing costs associated with platform well abandonment, which Oil and Gas UK estimates at around £4.8 million per well.

"We are also delighted to be sponsoring the annual Offshore Decommissioning conference dinner at the Fairmount Hotel in St Andrews. It is rewarding to be involved in such a significant event for the decommissioning industry, and our commercial team will be on hand during the event to talk to operators about how we can help to reduce their abandonment costs."

NYC-based PIRA Energy Group reports that midcontinent differentials strengthen. In the U.S., first large stock decline since early August. In Japan, crude runs decline with higher turnaround activity. Specifically, PIRA's analysis of the oil market fundamentals has revealed the following:

Midcontinent Differentials Strengthen
In September, the WTI discount to Brent and LLS narrowed, while differentials to WTI improved for Canadian, Rockies and Midland grades, as crude stocks fell in each of those regions. Forecasts of growth in U.S. shale production next year have been reduced. Higher crude runs, lower imports, more exports, pipeline line fill, and more rail east and west are absorbing this year's production growth.

First Large Stock Decline Since Early August
This past week a dramatic swing in product stocks from a week earlier build to a draw contributed to pulling overall commercial inventories lower. The sharpest week to week decline in runs this year, lower product imports and stronger product demand all contributed to the substantial product inventory decline. The crude stock decline added to the overall decline despite runs falling and despite a recovery in imports.

Japanese Crude Runs Decline with Higher Turnaround Activity
Crude runs dropped as turnarounds gear up. Crude imports rose which built crude stocks. Finished product stocks finally declined after having risen steadily since mid-June. Gasoline and gasoil demands were slightly higher, with small stock draws for each. Kerosene demand perked up due to consumer restocking and the stock build rate came in at 135 MB/D. Refining margins remain soft. Light product cracks were slightly weaker, while fuel oil cracks firmed.

Aramco Announces Another Round of Price Reductions for Differentials in November
Saudi Arabia's formula prices for November were just released. Another round of reductions in differentials was enacted for all the key markets with the most aggressive reductions again being to Asia. U.S. pricing was lowered $0.40/Bbl, for all but the lightest grades, but Saudi crude is still disadvantaged versus domestic grades by $1.50-2.50/Bbl. In Europe, against Urals crude in both NWE and the MED, Saudi crude was competitive based on current pricing in August, but that advantage eroded sharply in September, so the reductions were warranted to restore competitiveness. In Asia, the reduction will be welcome news to refiners as refining margins have only recovered to statistical means after extreme weakness seen during the summer, and have again begun to erode.

U.S. LPG Prices Rebound
U.S. propane prices shrugged off crude oil and gasoline price weakness and rebounded strongly last week from the prior week's selloff. Stronger demand and a smaller stock build propelled prices higher. Butane prices were unchanged, despite RBOB gasoline's 4.2% rout. Next week, U.S. prices should find support in higher seasonal and agricultural demand and the nearing end of inventory increases.

Ethanol Stocks Soar
U.S. ethanol production fell to a six-month low 881 MB/D last week as some plants underwent routine maintenance turnarounds. Stocks were up 236 thousand barrels to 18.8 million barrels, the highest level since March 2013.

The information above is part of PIRA Energy Group's weekly Energy Market Recap - which alerts readers to PIRA's current analysis of energy markets around the world as well as the key economic and political factors driving those markets.

The subsea sector is reportedly set to quadruple in size, with projected annual revenues of £85bn by 2020. Currently 45% of the UKCS (United Kingdom Continental Shelf) production comes from subsea wells and with an increased focus on maximising economic recovery, one of the key challenges is to increase the use of subsea tie-backs to existing installations.

To increase our ability to react to this growth a new DNV GL subsea team has been created. Martin Fowlie, Head of Section for the new unit, says: "DNV GL is very much looking to the future by bringing together the best of our technical expertise in this area. For many years, DNV GL in Aberdeen has been involved in the certification of subsea equipment and components. We have, over time, been privileged to call practically the entire procurement chain our customers, for certification or verification services. This puts us in a very strong position in understanding the challenges facing the subsea market."

He continues: "We have a great local team and a strong network within the new DNV GL organisation to really support the customer regardless of the size of the development, or the novelty of the technology."

The creation of the new subsea section comes on the back of the announcement earlier this month by DNV GL at Offshore North Seas (ONS) when a new 'Standard for certification of subsea equipment and components' was launched. It is thought that major efficiencies will be the resultant benefit of the standard, by means of streamlined quality control and manufacturing processes.

The new standard is complementary to the verification documents already in existence, and is a welcome addition to the portfolio for the subsea sector. DNV GL also has a number of Joint Industry Projects (JIPs) underway to standardise and streamline efficiency issues in the subsea industry. A recent cooperation project related to subsea documentation seeks to present a minimum unified set of documentation requirements for all major subsea components. Another current project addresses common specifications for steel forgings.

Bert Droy, Business Development Lead for Subsea and Floaters in Aberdeen concludes: "Having a dedicated section for subsea, with clear guidelines from which they can draw, is good news. Meetings are planned with our DNV GL peers globally, and the outcome will reinforce how we drive this forward. Of course, the most important task is to ensure that we communicate the content to the various subsea stakeholders, so we will be engaging with the industry to communicate the content of the standard in the near future."

Crowley Maritime Corporation's solutions group announced that it has received the first two of potentially four, new heavy-lift, ballastable deck barges (HDBs) for use by clients in the Asia-Pacific region. These new barges, which will be contracted and managed from the company's recently opened Singapore office, allow Crowley to better support regional customers in the oil and gas mining; Engineering, Construction and Procurement Management (ECPM); and Engineering, Procurement, Installation and Commissioning (EPIC) industries who are increasingly embarking on large-scale onshore and offshore projects.

These new 400-foot-long, 120-foot-wide (122 meter x 36.5 meter) HDBs, named HDB 01 and HDB 02 are moored in Batam, Indonesia. They have 25-foot (7.6-meter) side shells, which provide both the capacity and deck strength (up to 4,200 pounds per square foot or 25 tons per square meter) needed to accommodate larger drilling and production units used for deepwater offshore energy exploration and development. They are designed with more robust ballast systems to deal with high tidal ranges found in the region's load and discharge ports and have higher internal strength which allows tolerance when ballasting to the seabed, fully loaded – where tidal movement can be problematic.

"Customers in this region require locally available and tailored assets for their project needs," explained William Hill, director, business development in Singapore. "The industry has expressed the need for available equipment to support larger construction and topside moves along with complex deck loads. These HDBs were designed to do just that."

The barges are ABS classed, with an approximate deadweight capacity of 20,000 metric tons. Both were designed by Crowley's Seattle-based, naval architecture and marine engineering subsidiary Jensen Maritime and were constructed in China by Seabridge Marine Contractors Ltd/Jiangsu Yangzijang Shipbuilding Co., Ltd.

The company announced the opening of its Singapore-based project management and logistics solutions office in July. The office is located at 77 Robinson Road on the 34th floor of the Robinson Building and can be contacted at +65 6809 2160. Additionally, Crowley's wreck removal, marine salvage and emergency response subsidiary TITAN Salvage, based in Houston, also maintains a local presence with a 45,000 square-foot site west of the city, allowing for more rapid emergency response in the region.

In order to more effectively align and leverage CGG's strength in potential field and electromagnetic geophysical methods, effective January 1st, 2015, a Business Line named Multi-Physics will be established in the Acquisition Division. This Business Line will combine all of the current Airborne Business Line with the GravMag Solutions business that is presently in the Marine Business Line. The Multi-Physics Business Line will be led by Gregory Paleolog.

The distinct brand identities of GravMag Solutions and Airborne will be retained with each of these business units continuing to trade under these names. Emily Farquhar will continue to lead GravMag Solutions, now reporting to Greg, and the Airborne management structure and reporting relationships will be unaffected.

The term Multi-Physics is commonly used in both the scientific community and the marketplace to describe solutions derived from the integration of multiple physical parameter measurements or datasets. In CGG, the use of the descriptive term Multi-Physics will replace the informal term "Non-Seismics", previously used to describe alternative geophysical and remote sensing techniques. The two specialized teams also performing non-seismic techniques in Massy (General Geophysics) and Rio de Janeiro (Ground Geophysics Brasil) will remain in the Land Business Line due to their tight integration with the commercial and operational teams in Land. However, processes will be developed to ensure effective commercial coordination as we strive to increase the awareness and acceptance of a Multi-Physics solutions approach towards answering our customers' geological questions.

CGG has world-leading positions in the application of potential fields methods to oil & gas exploration and in the ability to provide geoscience solutions utilizing a combination of geological and geophysical techniques. The Multi-Physics Business Line will reinforce the market understanding of these capabilities and allow us to further develop in these areas by concentrating our similar resources and expertise.

Since the first successful oil well was drilled by Shell-BP in 1956 at Oloibiri, Nigeria has acclaimed the status of Africa's largest oil producer and the sixth largest in the world. However, the Nigerian oil and gas industry has been engulfed in challenges with few success stories. The statistics are damning: the country loses approximately 215,000bpd to oil theft, at an estimated value of $8 billion a year.

It is pertinent to state that the troubles in the Nigerian oil and gas industry cannot only be blamed on regional instability, oil theft and religious extremism. With the upcoming general elections, the long-awaited Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) which could help overhaul the beleaguered oil industry appears to be on the back burner, whilst the oil minister's claims of efforts made to secure pipeline infrastructure have not served as a deterrent to oil theft.

However, with the continuous investment of foreign players and the renewed involvement of local players, DW predicts that in 2015 Nigeria could drill 110 development wells both onshore and offshore. By the end of 2019 Nigeria's crude output could be 3.39 million barrels per day from its current output of 2.95 million. However, this is likely to be limited by lack of sufficient infrastructure and potential delays to final investment decisions pending the passing of PIB into law. With the right reforms and stability within the oil rich Niger Delta region, oil output would be sustainable over a longer period which could finally see the Giant of Africa roaring to hit its peak.

www.douglas-westwood.com

Peterson Offshore Group BV, one of the leading energy services groups operating in the North Sea announces its consolidated results for the 12 months ending 31st December 2013.

North Sea revenues increased to £288m and operating profit increased by 9%, to £8.3m. The group's UK based companies, including Peterson UK Ltd and 80:20 Procurement Services Ltd contributed 52% of the group's operating profit, an increase from 33% on the previous year.

Significant growth was seen at Peterson's offshore supply bases in Shetland where it successfully delivered a logistics project in support of capital investment schemes occurring West of Shetland.

The group's operating companies invested a further £3.8m in buildings, plant and equipment in 2013 including a warehouse and office in the port of Aberdeen whilst simultaneously reducing the group's Long Term Liabilities from £9.6m to £5.8m.

In total, 120 new jobs were created within the UK operating companies during 2013. The majority of these roles were in Aberdeen and Lerwick to accommodate growth in demand for Peterson's core services.

Erwin Kooy, CEO of Peterson said: "We have experienced positive growth in all areas of our business, and in particular for our North Sea operations. As an organisation we think in generations, with our continued success testament to the commitment of our team and their focus on our vision and plans for future growth.
We have established international freight forwarding, recruitment, marine operations and procurement in our service offering. Most recently we established our offshore wind capability and will continue to develop our global operations and our range of integrated services."

In 2013, 7600 square metres of warehousing and two additional berths were added in Aberdeen to support growth in its supply base management services and new teams were created to support its logistics consultancy activities following contract wins in the Middle East and India.

Substantial investment was also made in the development of bespoke logistics software in response to a growing demand for smart solutions and innovation from its customers.

"The offshore logistics sector is a competitive environment and as such we constantly strive to improve and innovate our offering for clients," continued Erwin Kooy "With the development of our e-Logistics packages we can meet that challenge and also offer a number of additional benefits including time and cost reduction."

As part of its ongoing growth and development strategy, flexible pipe specialist FlexTech has invested £500,000 into a new manufacturing and fabrication base in Lincolnshire.

Since its inception in March 2013, the Aberdeen based company has achieved turnover of £1milllion, and it is on track to reach £2.5million by the end of year two.

With existing research and development and manufacturing premises in Aberdeen, and an R&D facility in Lincolnshire, FlexTech's new Grimsby base will help to expand its presence across the UK, with plans to extend its capabilities and offerings into the renewables sector.

FlexTech Engineering Director, Craig Keyworth, said: "Since start-up, the company has been performing successfully within the oil and gas industry. The new investment in Grimsby is strategic due to the region emerging as a key player in the renewable energy industry, with potential to become the UK capital of the offshore wind industry.

"With such clear synergies between our services and equipment offerings within the oil and gas and renewables sectors, and the renewables developing at such a significant rate, the placement of our R&D facility in the region positions us well for an advance into the sector."

The newly acquired one and a half acre facility, with 3,000 sq. ft. office and workshop, currently employs seven skilled personnel, with a further five to be recruited over the next 12 months. It will provide FlexTech with an excellent base in the region both now, and as it increases staff numbers and service offerings in the future.

Mr Keyworth continued: "The companies that we have worked with in the region to develop the new base have been fantastic, and incredibly thorough, responsive and reliable, helping the development to progress in a smooth and successful manner."
The new facility will support the delivery of projects worldwide, with the team in Grimsby supporting FlexTech's increased presence in the region. With direct access to the world's biggest offshore wind farms, and Quayside access to the UK's largest port, it will also allow FlexTech to offer its range of products and services to a wider market and breadth of companies operating within the area.

FlexTech's core business is the successful delivery of flexible pipe and riser engineering projects, marine offloading systems and integrity management and inspection. It also has a range of innovative products designed to facilitate ease of installation, ensure operational integrity and prolong the life of the flexible in field.

FlexTech currently has a team of 12 subsea and marine specialists. Its management team boast more than 50 years' experience in the oil and gas industry among them.