NOV
19 April 2018
Oil giant’s multi-million HQ confirms 20 year commitment to north-east
A global oil and gas services company has announced a 20-year commitment to the North East of Scotland with the investment in a multimillion-dollar, purpose-built global HQ, manufacturing and engineering centre.
The $60 million (£41.7 million) investment in the new facility in Kintore, on the outskirts of Aberdeen, marks NOV’s largest investment in the UK business in recent years, which will be celebrated with an official open day on Thursday, 19 April 2018.
The 210,000 ft² base is the company’s global HQ and engineering centre for its wireline equipment manufacture and provides after-sales support for all NOV intervention equipment in Europe, Africa and the CIS. NOV’s main company headquarters is located in Houston.
As market leaders for wireline with the Elmar and ASEP brands, the building has been purpose built to support NOV’s 24-hour manufacturing and servicing operations for intervention and stimulation equipment. The new facility houses the global research and development centre for wireline, manufactures winches, masts, pressure control equipment and tubulars, and provides after sales support and servicing for wireline and Anson products. It also boasts three 30,000 psi-rated pressure test bays and a 60,000-psi underground pressure testing facility.
More than 300 employees are based at the Kintore site, which has combined the business’s Dyce, Westhill and Netherlands facilities. The move has seen an increase in headcount by more than 65 to service new multimillion-pound contract wins in the Middle East.
NOV Vice President for Wireline, David Brebner, said: “The new building demonstrates a huge commitment by NOV to the North East of Scotland. We have ongoing business in the North Sea and we have seen an increase in this market during the past six months with both our UK and Norwegian customers.”
“North and West Africa are both strong markets for us,” he continues, “and we’ve secured several multimillion-dollar deals for equipment sales and service in Saudi Arabia and Oman. The new facility better positions our team in Aberdeen to serve the needs of customers in the Eastern hemisphere.
Bill Cattanach, Head of Supply Chain at the Oil & Gas Authority, said: “It’s great to see NOV continuing to invest in the North Sea and the Aberdeen area with this fantastic new facility, which will create new jobs and host NOV’s global technology research and development centre. The role of technology in our industry is more critical than ever, and NOV’s commitment underlines the central role the supply chain is playing in delivering innovation that helps maximise economic recovery.”
Meanwhile, Colin Clark, Conservative MP for Gordon, who is hosting a debate on the oil and gas industry at Westminster on Thursday, 19 April, which coincides with NOV’s open day, said: “This investment by a global leader in oilfield equipment represents a strong vote of confidence in the oil and gas industry here in the north-east. The fact that such a major player is committing to a further 20 years in Aberdeenshire sends a clear signal that there is plenty of life left in the North Sea.”
“It is good news for local jobs and reflects a growing confidence in the oil and gas sector after what has been a very challenging period,” he concludes. “I wish NOV every success at its new premises in Kintore.”