| You may have heard about the idea of "peak | | | | employment will continue to grow. |
| oil", where some experts predict that the | | | | |
| world's ability to produce oil will peak | | | | Canada, USA, and Venezuela continue to sit on |
| within one or two decades. How does this | | | | a considerable amount of oil from oil shale |
| affect your offshore employment prospects? | | | | deposits - two trillion barrels of crude - |
| Should you still chase after oil company | | | | more than all historical conventional crude |
| jobs? After all, no more oil means no more | | | | and present reserves combined. The most |
| jobs, right? Maybe we should all become | | | | famous of these oil shale deposits is the |
| farmers and grow our own food? | | | | Green River Shale Formation encompassing the |
| | | | States of Colorado, Utah and Wyoming. It |
| Well, it is still too early to panic. Oil | | | | remains untapped, as the available technology |
| prices are still high, around $110 per | | | | today is still too crude and expensive. But |
| barrel. Consider that oil cost $70 in 2006, | | | | with improving technology and continued |
| and under $50 in the early 2000s, we are not | | | | depletion of conventional crude oil fields, |
| likely to see any significant drop in oil | | | | it is just a matter of time before these oil |
| prices soon. This means oil companies will | | | | shale fields start contributing jobs. |
| keep on looking for more oil, as well as | | | | |
| develop better technologies to get more oil | | | | So where will all these oil company jobs and |
| out of existing oil fields. | | | | offshore employment opportunities be? |
| | | | According to a 2006 UK report on the energy |
| How will better technology help? Currently, | | | | sector, using data gathered from over 200 |
| we get 20% initial recovery rate out of oil | | | | companies and major trade associations, there |
| wells. Another 40% can be recovered using | | | | are major shortages in managerial, |
| modern techniques like water flooding and | | | | professional and technical staff. The lack of |
| carbon dioxide flooding. In other words, we | | | | technicians, riggers, scaffolders, floormen |
| still have 40% of the oil left behind in our | | | | and subsea engineers was highlighted. The |
| supposedly dry oil fields - that is billions | | | | same report mentioned that: |
| of barrels of oil. Given continued high oil | | | | |
| prices, oilfield services companies will soon | | | | - 31,500 persons directly work for oil and |
| find new ways to recover this last 40% of oil | | | | gas companies and major contractors |
| left in the ground. Do you still think oil | | | | |
| company jobs will disappear? | | | | - 223,000 persons work in the oil and gas |
| | | | supply chain |
| Here is another fact to consider - only a | | | | |
| small percentage of the Earth's surface has | | | | - 85,000 work in jobs created by spending |
| been explored for oil, mainly deserts and | | | | from oil company employees - shops, |
| shallow seas. New technologies will make it | | | | restaurants, doctors, etc. |
| possible to find and recover oil in deeper | | | | |
| oceans. Offshore employment will definitely | | | | Certainly not all of this information holds |
| still exist. New offshore drilling jobs will | | | | true for the US and Canada in 2008 and |
| continue to be created. | | | | beyond, but it is still food for thought. Not |
| | | | everyone needs to work as a roustabout for |
| We should also not forget two alternative | | | | Shell. A little brainstorming will find you |
| sources of oil: heavy oil and oil shale | | | | other jobs you can do in the oil and gas |
| deposits. Heavy oil is much thicker than | | | | industry, e.g. oil refinery jobs. |
| normal crude. It has the consistency of | | | | |
| molasses, and is more difficult to pump out. | | | | As you can see, "peak oil" will not affect |
| With oil prices above $100, oil companies are | | | | your offshore employment prospects or your |
| now looking at the heavy oil fields in | | | | ability to find oil company jobs. Of course, |
| Alberta (Canada) and Orinoco (Venezuela). | | | | the equipment used on oil rigs will change |
| Undoubtedly, more heavy oil fields will be | | | | and evolve, but that has been true since the |
| found and exploited. As the demand for more | | | | 1900s. |
| oil from China and India is unlikely to quiet | | | | |
| down anytime soon, oil companies will | | | | Are you looking for offshore employment? |
| continue to build new oil rigs to pump heavy | | | | Click here to learn how can help you to |
| oil. The equipment may change, but offshore | | | | quickly and easily find offshore employment. |