Booming sector

Jul 4 2008 Evening Gazette

Recent investments in the oil and gas sector on Teesside include:

Heerema: The Hartlepool yard began work on a contract to build a 5,900-tonne deck and 500-tonne bridge for a platform working in the Nexen Buzzard oilfield off Scotland.

Sonhoe: Will given an update on plans next week to bring a £2bn crude oil refinery to Wilton. The project will create up to 2,500 construction jobs and up to 500 permanent jobs. It will also mean the creation of about 1,500 spin-off jobs. The project represents the biggest single industry investment on Teesside and will be the first specialist plant of its type in northern Europe.

Tees Alliance Group: The consortium began work on a £150m contract to build two state-of-the-art drilling rigs, commissioned by SeaDragon Offshore, at the Haverton Hill shipyard. It is said to be the country’s biggest non-military fabrication project. The hulls for the giant rigs are being built in Russia and will be transported to Teesside later.

Wilton Engineering Services: Reopened the former Kvaerner offshore yard on the Tees. It now employs more than 200 staff with 75% of its work in oil and gas.

CompactGTL: The Oxfordshire-based gas disposal firm is to run a new testing plant at Wilton, which will convert natural gas into crude oil - boosting the value of oilfield developments.

Camair Freight Solutions: The multi-modal freight transport operator, with a base at Durham Tees Valley Airport, said it was basing expansion plans on the booming on oil and gas sector.