Energy Voice – Out Loud

This week Ryan and Mat have been swanning about St Andrews as OEUK hosted its Offshore Decommissioning Conference. They have been hearing all of the 'C words' while Erikka has been keeping tabs on court cases and jobs promises. First off, Mat runs through Offshore Energies UK's decommissioning report which found firms spent more by doing less in 2023. While Mat kept his finger on the pulse, Ryan was "chatting up a bird" in the form of Khaleesi, the gyrfalcon. OEUK's decommissioning manager Ricky Thomson caught up with the Energy Voice team to discuss what the trade body aims to do in wind. The group is looking to bring the expertise of the UK's supply chain into the offshore wind sector. Finally, Erikka has been keeping herself warm in Aberdeen this week by typing as quickly as her finger can manage. She has been keeping tabs on GB Energy's commitment to 2-300 jobs in Aberdeen, a significant decrease from the 1,000 that had previously been promised. Additionally, Viaro Energy's CEO has been enrolled in a court case as his previous employer claimed he forged documents to steal millions.

Ed is back from ADIPEC and is set to regale Ryan and Mat with tales from Abu Dhabi while Shell, Equinor and Ithaca appear in court and Delitc looks to farm down Selene.  First up this week Mat discusses the comings and goings of Europe's courtrooms as oil firm lawyers have been discussing scope three emissions. Since the outcome of the Supreme Court's Finch Case downstream environmental impact is under the microscope and this has led to the approval of Shell's Jackdaw and Equinor and Ithaca's Rosebank coming into question. Next up, Ryan tells us about his chat with Deltic Energy's new CEO Andrew Nunn as he discusses potentially reducing the firm's 25% stake in the Selene project in order to reach final investment decision (FID). This comes months after Delic was unable to find a partner for its massive Pensacola project in the North Sea but Nunn says this is a different kettle of fish. Finally, Ed is back from his jolly in the Middle East. He was only recording podcasts, interviewing delegates, attending panels, hosting discussions and meeting the world's energy industry... there can't be that much he has to say.

Welcome to the third season of Gigawaters, an Energy Voice podcast in partnership with Orsted and hosted by renewables reporter, Micheal Behr.  This four part series will explore everything from innovation and decarbonisation to the impact on biodiversity and local communities. First up in the series, Alex Louden, Ørsted senior ventures and open innovation specialist, and Mary Harvey, from the Carbon Trust’s Offshore Wind team explore the importance of innovation

Technology is a continuing interest in the Middle East and one that Cammy Booth, at Net Zero Technology Centre (NZTC), has first-hand experience. The UK-backed group has had successes in bringing Adnoc together with innovators, concluding a sulphur competition at the Adipec show.

Expro has been operating in the Middle East and North Africa for around 20 years. Ingrid Huldal and James Yard get together with EVOL to share some thoughts around the region. While the region is strong on oil and gas, there is a growing desire to decarbonise and move into sustainable practices.

Is the UK government doing all it can to support exports? For Stuart Broadley, CEO of Energy Industries Council (EIC), the answer is resounding no. Speaking on the sidelines of the recently concluded Adipec in Abu Dhabi, Stuart sets out his thinking around some of the opportunities - and challenges - of entering a tough market.

Hydrogen has faced challenges but clearly has a role to play in tackling hard-to-abate sectors. Responding to this need, OPITO has launched a new hydrogen training course, the company's Lucie Booth explained on the sidelines of Adipec

This week on Energy Voice Out Loud, Ryan and Mat discuss the US presidential election and what Trump’s win could mean for the UK energy sector.   Plus, the NSTA is poised to reveal a new TWIST for decommissioning. What impact could it have on operators and the North Sea supply chain?   Then, we’re off to Abu Dhabi to hear from E-FWD's Ed Reed on the ground at ADIPEC.   And finally, Ryan and Mat discuss the launch of a new mental health consultancy focused on improving the wellbeing of offshore workers.

Despite the significant progress made in connecting the world’s population to the grid, nearly two billion people globally do not have access to clean cooking fuels.   Talking to Energy Voice Out Loud, on the third episode of the Road to ADIPEC series, Ipieca climate director Lorena Perez discusses the role of the oil and gas sector in advancing the UN’s sustainable development goals alongside the energy transition.  “The urgency, and the challenge, is too big and too complex just to try and face it alone and it will require unprecedented collaboration across all sectors and countries,” Perez said.   "It will require all parties and all technologies and all solutions to play their part.”  ADIPEC will take place in Abu Dhabi from November 4 to 7. This is the third episode in the Road to ADIPEC series.

This week, Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered the Labour government’s first budget since taking office amid intense scrutiny from the North Sea oil and gas sector.   Kicking off this week’s episode, Energy Voice’s Erikka, Ryan and Mat unpack what it meant for the UK energy sector and the reaction from the offshore industry as Reeves confirmed changes to the windfall tax. Was it a Nightmare on Downing Street?   Next up, Hydrogen Scotland held its annual conference in Glasgow this week and Mat discusses the key takeaways from the event, including positive signals from the German government on a green hydrogen export pipeline.   Finally, amidst the budget bonanza supermajors BP, Shell and TotalEnergies revealed their Q3 results this week. Erikka picks apart the results and how the firms might be looking at their North Sea operations post-budget.

As the world races to decarbonise, oil and gas firms are under intense scrutiny over greenhouse gas emissions. Talking to Energy Voice Out Loud, on the second episode of the Road to ADIPEC series, International Association of Oil and Gas Producers (IOGP) chief executive Graham Henley sets out the industry’s collaborative decarbonisation efforts.   As the industry returns to Abu Dhabi after the signing of the Oil & Gas Decarbonisation Charter at COP28, Henley said oil and gas firms must now “genuinely and measurably reduce the emissions and carbon intensity of our production”.   ADIPEC will take place in Abu Dhabi on November 4 to 7. This is the second episode in the Road to ADIPEC series.

Talk of the energy transition and the need to decarbonise tends to focus on production, but the other side of the equation – demand – must not be forgotten. Talking to Energy Voice Out Loud, on the new Road to ADIPEC series, Charlie Tan, CEO of the Global Impact Coalition (GIC) set out the importance of the chemicals industry. Securing commitments from companies, and their boards, makes it “a lot easier to be able to justify the business case, to secure the third party investment, to really understand the mechanisms of what you’re looking to do”, Tan said. ADIPEC will take place in Abu Dhabi on November 4 to 7. This is the first episode in the Road to ADIPEC series.

This week the UK energy sector is waiting with bated breath for the Labour Party's first budget as oil firms are set to receive an increased rate of tax.  Erikka kicks the show off by discussing the final warning shots fired by the country's oil and gas operators. The industry has not shied away from voicing concern with the Labour government's plan, however, this is the last ditch effort to have their voices heard before Rachel Reeves announces Labour's changes next Wednesday.  Next up, Mat has been looking into nuclear energy and how Viaro Energy is considering small reactors to power operations. Decarbonisation of oil and gas assets is a point of contention as some platforms struggle to electrify but Viaro has come up with a novel solutiuon.  Finally, the UK is finally setting out an energy infrastructure plan and Ryan asks, why has it taken so long?! Transmission infrastructure is key to achieving the energy transition and pylons have become a point of contention. As this was announced by the National Energy System Operator (NESO), SSEN Transmission announced plans to build 1000 homes in Northern Scotland as it looks to roll out infrastructure in the region.

The UK’s Labour government says it’s in a hurry to make Great Britain a clean energy superpower. So for this week’s podcast, news editor Erikka Askeland takes a romp through the first hundred days of the government and the billions that have been promised for green energy firms – but is it all new money? Reporter Michael Behr discusses what happened when Labour’s 100 days roadshow came North to Aberdeen, as Energy secretary Ed Miliband and GB Energy Chairman Jeurgen Maier promise the delivery – at last – of the energy skills passport. And finally, print features lead Ryan Duff adds grist to the rumour mill after five senior executives leave the private-equity-owned NEO Energy as it slows down development on a flagship North Sea prospect.

This week, Scottish Renewables and RenewableUK hosted the Floating Offshore Wind conference in Aberdeen. Energy Voice's Erikka, Ryan and Michael were in attendance, speaking to John Swinney, getting project updates and gauging supply chain impact. Kicking off this week's episode, the trio discuss their key takeaways from the event and how John Swinney urged developers to submit higher-quality consenting applications to the Scottish government.  Next up, Ryan spoke to Vårgrønn chief executive Stephen Bull about UK manufacturing, progress on Green Volt and the role of Chinese manufacturing in floating wind. Sticking with the Green Volt theme, there was some controversy surrounding the project at the start of the week as it was revealed project partner Flotation Energy had made a £30,000 donation to SNP Westminster lead Stephen Flynn following a prompt to accelerate consenting. Additionally, Green Volt named Aberdeen as its headquarters as it looks to create jobs in the region.

Delays in fixing damaged or corroded equipment in the North Sea is a huge cause for concern amongst workers and their families, along with those who remember what can happen when it goes terribly, disastrously wrong. Ian Garden, managing director of Rig Deluge, discusses a range of issues he found when surveying North Sea rigs fire safety systems and has highlighted delays in addressing them, with Piper Alpha survivor Joe Meanen joining to discuss the importance of fire safety culture.

It was a big week for GB’s electricity system with the closure of Ratcliffe. While the country’s goal of zero carbon from power has been accelerated to 2030, longer timeframes clearly give companies - and crucially workers - scope to prepare. As the UK waves goodbye to coal, the government is ushering in CCS. There’s an aim to capture 20-30mn tonnes per year of CO2 as Starmer finally delivers on the long-awaited Track 1 CCS project funding that was promised by the previous Conservative government. Talking of targets, there’s also much ambition for offshore wind. And there has been progress this week, for instance with the innovative Salamander floating wind project submitting an onshore consent application. There’s a growing sense the UK will fall short of its big plans, the trick is to try and avoid becoming disheartened.

That wait is over! Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced at this week's Labour Party conference that GB Energy will be based in Aberdeen.   Energy Voice reporter Mat Perry was listening to the prime minister make the announcement and discussed what it means for the Granite City while questioning if the state-owned firm has enough financial firepower to make a difference.   Print features lead Ryan Duff discusses the long wait for a cap and floor verdict. It was over six months ago that a government consultation ended for a CfD-like funding mechanism for technologies such as pumped storage hydro but the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero say industry will find out more "in due course."   Finally, E-Fwd editor Ed Reed has been looking into hydrogen while at Aurora's conference in London. Is blue hydrogen already on its way out and where will the "champagne" of the energy transition find its use?

Bridges and Bottlenecks is the latest podcast series by Energy Voice Out Loud in partnership with DNV. Each episode looks to address the hard-hitting issues within the energy transition. Technology exists that will be the bridge to take us there, but there are still a number of bottlenecks that stand in the way of progress. Joining Energy Voice’s print features lead, Ryan Duff, is DNV’s senior vice president, and regional director for UK and Ireland energy systems, Hari Vamadevan, and chief technology officer at Energy Systems Catapult Jon Saltmarsh. As this series comes to an end, the trio look back on previously discussed topics and what needs to happen going forward while highlighting the importance of communication to the energy transition.

On Energy Voice Out Loud this week, news editor Erikka Askeland and reporter Mathew Perry take in the OEUK Conference: Powering Our Energy Future. Hosted in Aberdeen, the conference had had some strong views to deliver. Erikka discusses some of the warnings issued by the likes of BP vice president for the North Sea Doris Reiter and OEUK boss, David Whitehouse, who talked about the effects of government policy. But was Energy Minister Michael Shanks listening? Mat tells all. There was also some good news to tell involving Cerulean Winds' INTOG offshore wind projects Aspen, Beech and Cedar, plus some of the latest green investments by the likes of Port of Aberdeen and Net Zero Technology Centre. Then we hear from some of the people were speaking at and attending the event, including Jenny Stanning, external relations director from the organiser, Offshore Energies UK; Myrtle Dawes, CEO of the Net Zero Technology Centre; Neil Rowantree, vice president of energy at Blend; and last but not least Marcus Paige, business development manager at Kellas Midstream.