Posted by Alex Turner
UK limited company contractors with skills relevant to the oil and gas industry will be heartened by new comments from Alex Salmond, Scotland's first minister, who has claimed that the economy will be focussed on petroleum for decades to come.
Speaking to industry experts at an oil and gas conference, Mr Salmond said that the industry will witness higher returns over the next few decades than had previously been expected.
Mr Salmond observed that there remains a significant amount of oil still to be extracted from the North Sea, meaning there will be working opportunities for UK contractors and others for some time to come.
"This country will remain a petroleum-driven economy for decades yet to come," he is quoted as saying by the Press Association.
"That is not an anti-renewables statement … we simply must maximise the recovery of our indigenous oil and gas resources, or indeed we risk not making the transition."
Mr Salmond said that the oil industry is key to balancing the UK economy, explaining that it helps support trade throughout the country.