Jobs are created in pursuit of black stuff

Jul 7 2008 by Andrew Mernin, The Journal

THE next six months could see up to 200 jobs created in the region at engineering group Amec on the back of rapid growth in the oil and gas sector.

The firm, which employs 700 people in Darlington and Wynyard, has 100 vacancies for design and engineering staff.

The company also expects to land two or three significant contracts in the next six months which could generate another 100 North East jobs. The group is also looking for skilled people willing to move out of the region to fill scores of vacancies at its London and Aberdeen operations.

Amec natural resources operations director Stephen Hope said: “We need to advertise to the public at large that there’s a lot of work in the North East.

“There are a lot of good quality jobs in here that can enhance the skill set in the region. We have got lots of jobs for North Easterners within the region, but we can also distribute those jobs to Aberdeen or London.”

This year Amec has performed strongly and recently moved out of low-margin sectors such as road building and construction to focus more on the booming drilling and mining industries.

As oil prices continue to soar beyond $146 a barrel, more investors are targeting the black stuff and its related industries, leaving Amec well positioned for growth.

Last week the company’s chief executive Samir Brikho said it remained in an acquisitive mode with net cash hovering around the £600m mark. Since Mr Brikho’s appointment in 2006 the company has spent £110m acquiring four consultancy businesses and this year shares have climbed 45% so far.

Last month the company won a major deal with BP for project management work on the oil company’s offshore schemes around the world.

The deal is estimated to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars over four years and involves engineering and project management on oil rigs.

Last summer the company opened a design and engineering centre at Wynyard Park in Stockton after the closure of its Hadrian Yard in Wallsend.

At the time, the company announced plans to create 150 jobs for trainees and graduates.

There are a lot of good quality jobs in here that can enhance the skill set in the region.