Decommissioning Leadership Group Formed

Industry leaders have joined together to shape the future of decommissioning through the formation of the Decommissioning Leadership Group. Conceived and managed by Decom North Sea, the group held its inaugural meeting at The Chester Hotel in Aberdeen in June with the mission to set out a strategy for leading the development of an efficient and effective oil and gas decommissioning sector.

Decommissioning spending is forecast at an estimated £17.6 billion ($23.3 billion) over the next decade, and Decom North Sea is a not-for-profit organization aimed at connecting capability with opportunity across the oil and gas decommissioning sector. Decom North Sea has grown since its inception in 2010 to more than 350 members drawn from operators, major contractors, service specialists and technology developers.

The Decommissioning Leadership Group comprises of about 50 people, the majority of which are elected Decom North Sea members representing a cross section of the sector, plus representation from key stakeholders within the industry.  

Member Stuart Martin of Ardent, said: “My hope for the Decommissioning Leadership Group is that we can become a center for excellence in Aberdeen, the U.K. and globally. There is currently no recognized best practice within the industry. Through recognizing the lessons learnt from experience, I believe the Decommissioning Leadership Group is perfectly placed to lead the way.”

A key action for the first meeting was to initiate work groups in a number of areas. Over the coming months each workgroup will meet on a bi-monthly basis to move their assigned topic forward. The full Decommissioning Leadership Group will meet at regular intervals to review progress.