HFI ramps up Aberdeen presence with a focus on Subsea, Decommissioning and Floating Offshore Wind

Last week was a productive one in Aberdeen, gathering market intelligence with colleagues Samuel Arnold, Hugh Fraser Junior and Tim Eley and catching up with long-standing friends of HFI, including Mike Beveridge (Piper Sadler), Gary Wilson (MDL), Doug Duguid (Aurora Energy), David Clark (Verlume) and Steve Fernie (Global Underwater Hub).

Having left Aberdeen for the Middle East in the early 2000s after seven years as Head of Legal at Wood, I am increasingly convinced Aberdeen and the North-East have an important role to play in the next phase of the global energy sector. At Hugh Fraser International (HFI), we are strengthening our Aberdeen office as a client services hub focused on three sectors where we see substantial long-term opportunity:

• Subsea
• Decommissioning
• Floating Offshore Wind (FOW)

Significant offshore opportunities are emerging across Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Cyprus with US$165 billion of offshore investments in the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean being tracked by EIC over the next five years. Aberdeen’s subsea credentials are well established and, through our participation in Global Underwater Hub, we look forward to supporting clients across our core markets in the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean.

Decommissioning presents another major opportunity, with the Middle East expected to see US$30-60 billion of offshore decommissioning activity over the next two decades, creating strong demand for North Sea expertise and know-how and our Aberdeen team will play an increasingly important role in supporting client ventures throughout these markets.

The Renewables UK report released in October identified approximately 152 GW of floating offshore wind capacity operational or under development worldwide, covering 300 projects in 26 countries. FOW also represents a compelling long-term opportunity, with floating technology needed to unlock 80% of global offshore wind energy potential in locations with water depth in excess of 60 metres, higher wind speeds and non-congested coastal usage. While the sector may face near-term challenges, it will become a mainstream energy industry in the 2030s and 2040s with the Mediterranean emerging as a key growth region.

Aberdeen can look forward to a new chapter in its economic development with ten major economic and infrastructure developments in recent years – Great British Energy, the South Harbour, the City Bypass, Aberdeen Airport (now Scotland’s best airport), Union Square Centre, the Net Zero Technology Centre, the National Decommissioning Centre, TECA, the Floating Offshore Wind Centre and the Energy Transition Zone Ltd.

HFI owes much to its Aberdeen roots and to the foundations laid by Wood. Following the passing of Sir Ian Wood earlier this year, I am particularly proud that HFI is increasing its involvement in my home city as a small tribute to his legacy.