Wood to create 250 jobs with $400m Statoil deal

Wood Group is to create about 250 jobs after winning a deal with Norwegian oil major Statoil.

Wood Group's Mustang arm will maintain four Statoil facilities

The Aberdeen-based firm said its Mustang Norway division will provide maintenance and modification services to four Statoil installations – Grane, Snorre A and B and Visund – in the Norwegian continental shelf.

The deal, worth about $400 million (£266m) will run for six years, with the option of a four-year extension.

It comes after Wood said last week that it was confident of meeting its profit targets in the face of “challenging” market conditions.

In August, the group revealed that it had slashed about 5,000 jobs since the start of the year, including 1,000 in the UK, as it seeks to rein in costs amid the plunge in oil prices.

In addition, Wood Group Mustang Norway will also be able to tender for individual projects for Statoil operated onshore and offshore installations in Norway, under a ten-year agreement that starts in the first quarter of next year.

Otto Søberg, president of the division, said: “This is a breakthrough for Wood Group on the Norwegian continental shelf and we look forward to building on our existing relationship with Statoil.

“The work secured will call for a considerable build-up of the offices in Bergen and Stavanger and we will undergo a recruitment campaign to enhance our key talent and bring the best expertise to the projects.”