EDITOR Joe Forshaw joe@energy-focus.net
PROJECT MANAGER Tommy Atkinson tommy@energy-focus.net
PROJECT MANAGER David Hill david@energy-focus.net
PROJECT MANAGER Chris Bolderstone chris@energy-focus.net
LEAD DESIGNER Aaron Protheroe aaron@energy-focus.net
CONTRIBUTOR Manelesi Dumasi
CONTRIBUTOR Karl Pietersen
CONTRIBUTOR David Napier
CONTRIBUTOR Timothy Reeder
CONTRIBUTOR Benjamin Southwold
CONTRIBUTOR William Denstone
Something that we are constantly reminded of is the level of skill in the UK engineering space. The ingenuity, persistence, and ability to think outside of the box is unmatched (not to be biased). From Aberdeen to Pembrokeshire to Lowestoft to Southampton, the way UK engineers solve problems is remarkable.
Take Katoni Engineering, a multi-disciplinary firm with an international footprint, as a perfect example. The company has developed a written set of values internally – a culture that is encouraged and adopted by all staff. By holding this – the Katoni Way – in the highest regard, above all else, Katoni has managed to grow aggressively in the past three years. Now, CEO James Bream explains that a new office in the Netherlands, partnerships in West Africa, and plans to grow with international clients at home in Aberdeen are wellunderway.
North Sea Energy Services, headed up by Scott MacAngus, is another Aberdeen success story. The company fabricates steel piping and associated infrastructure for the North Sea offshore space. But it is preferred because of its focus on quality. Others cannot match the level of output in terms of suitability, and this is down to the culture within the company.
Jenkins & Davies Engineering in Wales is a historic leader in fabrication, turnaround, and maintenance for heavy industry. Active on multiple refinery sites, with a specialism in heat exchangers, the mantra of this business is to deliver genuine excellence without over stretching itself. MD Richie Barnard talks to us about his willingness to forgo work so that current projects receive optimum attention.
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Engineers are often overlooked in their contribution to the larger project so in this edition we focus on the truly amazing things that they do to get things done. If your company is similarly dynamic, get in touch and tell us more. We’re always on the lookout for positive news. Check in with us on LinkedIn
Joe Forshaw EDITOR
+44 (0)20 3097 1743
joe@energy-focus.net
DRON & DICKSON
Safely Proven in Hazardous Environments
OCCMS
OCCMS Preps Global Expansion Alongside Orion Group
NORTH SEA ENERGY SERVICES
Changing NSES Secures Solid Future
JENKINS & DAVIES ENGINEERING
On Time, Under Budget and Top Class, Without Fail
KATONI ENGINEERING
Thriving Katoni Eyes Further Double-Digit Growth
PRODUCTION: David Hill
An industry leader in electrical engineering and products for challenging conditions, Dron & Dickson has achieved great success thanks to an unwavering commitment to safety. Group MD, Lenny Collins, tells Energy Focus that the business is growing because its reputation for delivery is outstanding.
//Premier electrical wholesale and engineering firm, Dron & Dickson, is well versed in transition and reinvention. The company, a pioneer in hazardous and harsh industrial areas, boasts almost a century of experience, operating across various industry sectors, consistently searching for effective solutions for clients.
120 permanent employees and 250 contractors work across five Dron & Dickson offices and on client sites much further afield. Today, Dron & Dickson is trusted to deliver on its promise of ‘everyone home safe’.
“We are starting to move beyond the SME categorisation and we have been on a strong growth trajectory over the last three or four years,” Group MD, Lenny Collins tells Energy Focus.
He explains that the company is diversifying, developing its brand in the renewables space as the wider energy industry places more of an emphasis on sustainability.
“Historically, we are probably viewed as an oil and gas services company, and
we are not embarrassed by that. It’s something that we should be proud of,” says Collins, saying that the company is on a strategic diversification journey.
“For a whole number of reasons –sustainability, future generations, the environment, our own company longevity - we know that we have to adapt. We are nearly 100 years old, incorporated in 1927, and we will continue to diversify our portfolio. That doesn’t happen overnight, but we are absolutely committed to it, we have our own net zero plan in place to take us to carbon neutrality by 2030. It is front and centre in our strategy to diversify, and we have done it before. We started life in mining and heavy manufacturing. We pivoted in the 1980s to get into oil and gas, and we are on the precipice of another transition, and we believe we can successfully manoeuvre ourselves towards that.”
Dron & Dickson moved into a brandnew HQ in Aberdeen last year, and this
followed the opening of the latest office in Runcorn. At the end of 2022, the group acquired Cable Solutions Worldwide – a major distributor with clients around the world. As always, Dron & Dickson was also busy striking new deals with manufacturers, ensuring the world’s best products are easily available for clients.
Collins - a mechanical engineer with leadership experience across health, safety, environment and quality (HSEQ) and an enviable academic history - splits Dron & Dickson operations across three main divisions that work ubiquitously, complementing each other with every interaction.
“First is electrical wholesale where we are a distributor for electrical products including lighting, junction boxes, glands, batteries, containment –anything electrical for a hazardous, harsh or industrial area. Second, engineering services which connects all products at site and handles maintenance and inspection of all electrical equipment, projects, fire and gas and rope access services. Third is our cable company, Cable Solutions, which connects the products and helps the engineers on site to complete everything.”
This organisational expertise and cohesion was evident in Q4 2023 when Dron & Dickson signed an industry first integrated contract with Harbour Energy – the UK’s largest oil and gas producer - to supply electrical engineering and wholesale services. The agreement was the culmination of a long-term partnership in the North Sea and across the UKCS, affording Dron & Dickson the chance to reduce power consumption and emissions, lower ongoing operational costs, and enhance workplace safety.
“We are the only UK company that can offer the combined range of services across wholesale, distribution, and engineering services. Our main competitors are purely on distribution in terms of the supply of products, or only on the engineering side,” says Collins. “We
Continues on page 10
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have used our competitive advantage really well over the last number of years and we have clients who have signed up with us to provide both products and engineering, additionally by adding cable to the mix has further enhanced our holistic offering.”
Growth has been impressive, and the longer-term vision is to expand the company’s presence, opening new offices in underserved geographies. For Collins, who worked at Rolls Royce for 20 years, any expansion is about furthering the Dron & Dickson’s vision while developing new relationships with both customers and suppliers.
“We have two offices in Aberdeen, one in Stirling, one in Runcorn, one in Hull, and one in Lowestoft. Our engineers are out on various assets
across oil and gas, petrochemicals, wind farms, pharmaceutical sites – anything classed as hazardous industrial.
“The northeast, around Teesside, and Ireland, both north and south, are part of our expansion strategy. We are actively pursuing that, and I hope that we would have one or both opened by the end of the calendar year,” he confirms.
Through this strategic network of locations that cover almost all of the heavy industrialised regions around the UK and Ireland, Dron & Dickson will become integral in the development of a wider value chain that contributes to safe operations in harsh and hazardous environments.
In July, the company announced a new partnership with Autronica Fire and Security AS, a global leader in fire and gas
safety, prominent in the energy sector. Formalising a longer-term working arrangement, the two companies were confident that the partnership would lead to improved local service delivery. Relationship building like this, says Collins, is essential for further growth.
“We ask many more questions today, beyond just commercial. We look at ethics, where products are manufactured, type of materials that go into products, where those materials are sourced, lifecycle management and we make sure that whoever we engage with is committed to social responsibility. We must get peace of mind that we are dealing with reputable partners who do things in a way that is ethical and responsible.”
Relationships with the industry are reciprocated with Dron & Dickson providing highly relevant feedback
Dron & Dickson are long-standing partners of Hubbell, supporting our market sectors for both Chalmit & Hawke where we offer innovation and solutions to our customers with high quality products and quality customer service.
With 100+ years of shared experience for designing and supplying products to the world’s harshest environments the Chalmit and Hawke range of products offer quality designed products offering ease of installation, reduced maintenance, long life spans, return of investments and ultimately one solution.
to product developers, ensuring ongoing quality and consistency.
“We rely heavily on manufacturing partners, especially on the wholesale side,” Collins adds. “We have forged some longstanding relationships and that helps commercially with pricing but also with innovation. We are at the coalface, our engineers are out there working with the products day-in-day-out, and they can provide detailed feedback. That means our manufacturing partners can implement changes and improvements that will result in improvements and efficiency gains on site.”
Regular engagement is also sought with industry training providers to ensure the team is at the cutting edge when it comes to excellence in safety. Frequent updates and changes to requirements, including CompEx and IRATA (rope access) certification, are important
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for the industry and Dron & Dickson continues to upskill its people to ensure they are as capable as possible. Across the supply chain, whether service or product based, the company invests in local partners. “Most are UK based, and others are Scandinavian or from Central Europe” says Collins. “We do work from a harmonised set of principles and there is an existing benchmark that companies will adhere to.”
Importantly, the way forward for Dron & Dickson – and the entire industry, even across energy transition and industry reinvention – is through ambitious and innovative strategies that are grounded in safety. The company has proven that safety pays – now boasting multimillion-pound revenues – and, as Collins completes his MBA, this steadfast focus will remain.
“Everything that is done at Dron
& Dickson comes from our purpose. I believe every organisation should have a purpose as it defines their existence. Ours is ‘everyone home safe’. Thinking about the environments that we work in, we deal with electricity and we provide safe electrical solutions to prevent explosions and other associated risks. That is why our purpose is simple. It includes everyone who interacts with that environment – our own staff, other contractors, local communities, etc – and that is ultimately what we want to achieve as an organisation,” he concludes.
By delivering world class commissioning and completion services through its proprietary Orbit® software, OCCMS is also able to call on parent company Orion Group as it looks for international growth. Together, the two bring an industry leading offering that is truly valuable for clients.
//Some of the world’s largest energy majors continue to search for modern, innovative solutions when it comes to commissioning and completion of vital projects that will enable and enhance the energy landscape now and into the future.
It’s a challenging and often costly endeavour, but safety, security and quality are at the heart of every project to be commissioned and completed. Starting up a new asset in a safe and timely manner is of the utmost priority for the operator of that asset and so it makes sense to partner with the best and invest in
support that is proven in delivery.
Leading completions and commissioning management services company, OCCMS, has both the ability and the reach to provide impactful results for clients. Part of the Orion Group, OCCMS is based in Aberdeen and focuses on engineered solutions for commissioning and completions on energy infrastructure projects worldwide. OCCMS therefore has the capability and capacity to offer a range of services that others cannot, streamlining the approach and providing cost efficiency.
The Orion Group is an international technical resources specialist with 37
years of experience, initially serving the fabrication space for the offshore North Sea market but expanding geographically as well as diversifying into many other sectors. Orion has a strong history in providing added value services to its clients from simple global mobility scopes through to design and build of decommissioning infrastructure on nuclear decommissioning projects. OCCMS is another specialist business within Orion’s portfolio of businesses that collaborate to provide these added value services worldwide.
Famed for its Orbit® software – a completions management system software that underpins excellence
in project management and delivery – OCCMS is actively exploring opportunities in new markets, in new geographies, and with new customers while it excels with its current and often complex delivery of scopes and projects.
At the Centrica Storage onshore gas and processing terminal, OCCMS has been operating for a number of years, using Orbit® to help safely deliver commissioning and completions services. Over several phases, the infrastructure was upgraded while continuing to receive natural gas and associated liquids from offshore fields. The gas is transferred to the national transmission system and OCCMS work ensured the project has been a major success with 60,000 total onshore hours without a lost time incident, including during the Covid 19 pandemic. The company has also completed significant projects for Centrica Energies, First Exploration & Production, PBS, Total Energies, Glencore, Imperial Oil, EDF Nuclear, Addax Petroleum, ExxonMobil, HKN, Spirit Energy, Yinson, Conoco Phillips, Woodside, Worley, Oyu Tolgoi, Archer, and many more.
“In 2019, the company began to evolve into more of a completions and commissioning services consultancy,”
says Operations Director, Jamie Japp. “We have gone from strength to strength during this period of growth, consolidating and pivoting with our strategy along the way.”
Japp is looking to build the OCCMS reputation in new markets while leveraging the scope of services provided by Orion Group. With offices in the UK, Azerbaijan, the Netherlands, USA, Canada, Oman, Qatar, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Mozambique, Senegal, Vietnam, Uganda, Singapore, wherever projects begin, OCCMS gets the news quickly.
“In 2022 and 2023 we started a big push in the USA where we have offices in Houston, Chicago, and Jersey City. We have been building the brand there and winning new work, and that has been successful,” he details. “When we are speaking as a specialist business, we can engage with other offices and offer the parent company and their clients more than just a manpower supply provision – we can offer specialist services to help them deliver their projects throughout the full lifecycle from start to finish.”
The innovation and invention of OCCMS and Orbit® combined with the capacity and experience of
Orion Group is where real strength is achieved for clients. “When they speak to their clients, they can offer clients something so much more niche and bespoke,” says Japp. “We are helping and supporting regional and overseas offices so that they can think about us as an integrated business unit, asking what their clients are doing about commissioning and completions and the specialist technicians and engineers that go with that service.”
Alongside deploying specialised technicians and engineers into the right places with the best software, the company makes use of a talent pool of professional contractors who are experienced in the field and also knowledgeable of OCCMS and Orion Group’s methodologies and culture. Importantly, these approved contractors also speak the language of Orbit® and Japp describes them as “the top 10% of individuals”.
This success was demonstrated with TAQA Bratani on the UKCS where the company’s onshore engineering department saw a need to streamline and more effectively monitor commissioning and completion challenges across five North Sea assets. Orbit® was rolled
out, alongside the training of skilled personnel, and the client was able to make radical improvements to workflow, process management, and accountability in a short space of time.
“We are actively delivering projects for a number of end users,” says Japp of the current project pipeline. “We look after a significant portion of commissioning and completions for Total assets in the North Sea – Alwyn, Dunbar, Culzean, Elgin, Franklin, and other assets. That is a contract that we are successfully delivering on for our key client PBS, now in year four of five and we have extension options that we will work with our client to support them as they continue along their committed path. We are still actively involved with Centrica and we have team members working at the Easington terminal and offshore on 3B Rough. That work comes from our reputation for safety, and the quality of delivery that we provide our clients. We deliver safely and professionally, and we understand the operations of our clients because we have been working together for a long time.
“Longer-term,” he adds, “we are looking at projects that can be as minor as fire prevention software mods with one technician, right up to much larger greenfield projects which require higher volumes of resource to commission. We work right through the scale of what you’d find on a large project or operating assets –in the greenfield or brownfield spaces.”
When Orion Group started life in 1987, oil and gas was the unquestioned energy provision of the day. Even at the time of the formation of OCCMS in 2006, North Sea oil and gas remained vitally important in European energy strategy. But today, the energy transition is underway, and businesses must adapt. Those that are able to identify the opportunities and take advantage are those that will thrive. Japp says that OCCMS is perfectly positioned to adjust its position as the large UK based greenfield projects in the oil and gas space are few and far between compared with previous decades.
“However, because we combine our statement of work operating model (SOW), supported by the might and global reach of the Orion Group and the smarts of what OCCMS can provide, we are perfectly positioned to collaborate and deliver on much larger scale projects who require commissioning and completions services in other countries and sectors going forward.
“More recently we are seeing a surge in the request for Orbit® licenses and so we have pivoted and recognised that our clients don’t just need a black box with basic training. We now offer a bespoke part of the software service supply where we can build a database for the client and give them full training while supplying resources such as
completions engineers to manage the database on their behalf,” he says. Furthermore, the supply of Orbit® can either be deployed on premise by the client or hosted on cloud-based servers on behalf of the client with the latter becoming more of a norm.
“We are pivoting into renewables and offshore wind,” he adds. “The language is slightly different in the way completions and commissioning are undertaken. We are adapting successfully to this necessary transition, and we are well-informed and better articulated in that space as we improve our understanding of our client needs.”
Orbit® Product Manager, Craig Finnie adds: “We are leaning heavily towards the software and the service of that software because the lifecycle of commissioning and completions is such that we still need to work through the execution phase into the operational phase, and we still need to verify what construction does, but the golden thread that pulls that all together is completions management and the verification of a quality assured and quality checked build. By pivoting, while keeping an eye on big projects and maintaining current clients, we have developed the software to operate online or offline, support digital or traditional paper-based completions, and can be deployed by clients onpremise or be fully cloud-based.”
The advantage that OCCMS brings here is flexibility, able to work in a more conventional manner or on a modern infrastructure, or as a blend of the two. Japp says that this delivery comes as a result of the company possessing a deep understanding of the commissioning and completions space – knowledge that all companies don’t necessarily possess.
“There are many long-term providers and they all compete in the cloud space,” he says. “Our clients can use traditional methods and print off quality exhibits, checksheets, and tick boxes or we can provide a full cloud-based system, hosted on our network on their behalf, fully paperless and digital.”
The level of detail involved in completions management systems makes it challenging to manipulate and fit each project, and some companies try to offer a blanket approach across the market. This, says Japp, is not suitable for all clients and sectors and is why OCCMS continually supports, adapts, customizes, and updates its product and services range for their current, and future clients.
“Our system will, ultimately, be much more than a completions management system,” he says.
“Completions management is all about inspections and tests. When you engineer a project, there are many deliverables with many tags. Construction comes and builds the infrastructure around that, putting in all the instruments and controls, structural components, pipework, and power generation etc – all which have their own tags. Those then create form part of sub-systems that sit within systems. When it is all built to the design, it is mechanically complete. Commissioning teams then inspect everything to ensure it meets the design before moving into testing to prove and verify the design intent When all the sub-systems are pre-commissioned, they are dynamically tested together to ensure the package is ready to be handed over for operation.”
Verifying everything and providing useable evidence is vital, and each client has its own internal process that Orbit® and OCCMS must align with. Thankfully, Orbit® is a powerful tool that has been developed over years of operation on major projects. “It provides all the evidence of successful completions management covering construction, commissioning execution, safe handover to operations, but we recognise that our system has the potential to do
a lot more and we are developing Orbit® to do that now,” says Japp.
Further development of Orbit®, alongside a deliberate entry to new markets, while deepening relationships with key clients shows a level of ambition that others, in the current economic climate, are not necessarily willing to commit to.
“We want to be the best in the business,” confirms Japp. “We are mindful that we operate leanly – headcount-wise – just now, and we realise that putting everything into the oil and gas sector is not the answer,” he says, adding that clients don’t want the same as what has been done before, especially those further along their transition journey.
“We know we need to diversify, and we know we must invest as we grow the business. We want to embrace change and understand very clearly what our clients are looking for – even when they don’t fully know themselves and we have to lead them through our own experiences. Listening is the key. Orbit® is our proprietary software, we develop it all in house, and we operate out of our Aberdeen hub.”
Importantly, the service that OCCMS delivers is based around the knowledge, expertise and pioneering of people. It is a people business and a peoplefocused group. By creating a vibrant and trust-filled atmosphere, OCCMS’ Managing Director, Barry Cann, believes that the people in OCCMS will continue to drive and thrive.
“We are a specialist business, and the company is family owned,” says Cann. “There is an intimate and personal feel about working here,” he adds. “We are all spread across all of our pursuits, and that makes you feel part of the everyday – you feel you can make a real difference to the success of the company and that your voice is heard. That is close to my own heart and that is what I enjoy most about being part of OCCMS and its future.”
The relationship the company enjoys with its parent company is
Official distributors and Channel Partners for manufacturers including Ametek, Druck, Fluke, Panametrics, and Yokogawa Test & Measurement
scotia-instrumentation.com
remarkably positive, and the two work as extensions of each other rather than competitors. This fosters creativity and ambition whilst maintaining a collaborative and joined up feel.
OCCMS Global Sales Director, Andrew Mottershead, says: “We see the USA and Canada as big regions for us, and we have a lot of supportive colleagues in that region that we can collaborate with. We also recognise the Middle East as a huge opportunity, building on an already impressive client portfolio, word of mouth yielding an unexpected yet rewarding line of queries. Alongside the wider group, we are typically included in the tenders and pursuits they are involved with to bolster technical input and demonstratable capability, ensuring we have the correct accreditations and licenses to be considered for projects in those regions. Having a network of international offices and given there
are commissioning or completions management component to any given project, we get that insight very quickly through our internal network.”
In the market today, there are few that can respond as quickly as OCCMS and few that can create a proposition with many of the world’s majors to call on as case studies. The company uses all its insight, from a range of project successes, and strive to always do better and more efficient work for our clients.
“When you develop your projects for tomorrow’s market, you don’t always know what that market will look like, but you know how it shouldn’t look because of all the learnings you have. We believe that we are developing something that our clients will truly value,” says Japp.
“Our passion, experience, and intimate service provision is what we hope is enough for new
clients to consider OCCMS for their future projects. We partner with our preferred local supplier, Scotia Instrumentation, for the supply of our test equipment, a relationship that has grown over the past five years. Their service is second to none and we are grateful to them for their continued support and expert supply and calibration services,” he concludes.
Whether its expansion, overhaul, or newbuild, OCCMS and Orion Group together deliver powerful technology and human capital. And when this mix is correctly applied, results and outcomes can be achieved in an unrivalled fashion – underpinned by safety and cost efficiency.
PRODUCTION: David Hill
Structural changes to North Sea Energy Services strategy are helping to position the company for sustainable growth over the long term. MD Scott MacAngus tells Energy Focus that a new premises and a drive for work in new industry sectors are building excitement in this expert engineering and fabrication organisation.
//Aberdeen businesses in the energy space have faced tough times in recent years. Confusion and uncertainty about the future of the North Sea have piled the pressure on those operating in Europe’s oil capital. Further fuelling the challenge is the change in UK government. What is the plan for the North Sea in these times of energy transition amidst energy security concerns?
The new government has made it clear that new exploration licenses will be a thing of the past and the North Sea will be completely reshaped. The focus will switch to renewable energy opportunities, and, over generations, a just transition will occur, taking green instead of black energy from the North Sea while replacing jobs with modern, technology-based opportunities.
Currently, estimates suggest that more than 120,000 people are still directly or indirectly employed
thanks to the oil and gas industry in Aberdeen (and thousands more when including the wider energy sector). Within the uncertainties and obscurities, there are clearly opportunities for those that know how to find them.
“We are looking to diversify into other sectors, and that is looking very promising,” says Scott MacAngus, Managing Director at North Sea Energy Services (NSES). The firm, based in Bridge of Don, is a specialist engineering firm providing fabrication, welding, and offshore support services for clients operating rigs and production platforms in the North Sea.
Founded in 2017 with a focus on pipework and structural steel for the offshore market, the company has grown quickly to become recognised as an industry leader. Guaranteed quality and timely deliveries, all prepared with
extreme attention to detail on site in Aberdeen, have helped NSES to thrive.
MacAngus is an experienced operator in this industry. After working for some of the biggest names in the business he joined NSES to help take the company to the next level. From apprentice welder in the early 90s across corporate positions for NOV, Wood, Petrofac, and the Global Energy Group, MacAngus has gained valuable experience in growth and HSEQ attainment. When he became MD at the end of 2022, he went about reorganising the business to set a pathway for expansion.
“I saw that we needed to demerge from another company that we were tied to because there were too many shared services. We did that, and we have now been running as a completely separate and independent company for 18 months, with our own HSEQ certification. It has been
IPP Aberdeen, the latest addition to the prestigious IPP Group, has been making a mark since its inception in the summer of 2023. With roots tracing back to 1994, the IPP Group was founded to meet the rising demands for specialist piping products requiring swift delivery to the Oil, Gas, and Petrochemical Industries. Over the years, the IPP Group has ascended to become a global leader, renowned for its extensive material inventory and manufacturing capabilities, coupled with offices strategically located worldwide to ensure rapid response times - no matter how remote your location or specific to your requirements.
In line with the group’s legacy, IPP Aberdeen has quickly established itself as a ‘pivotal hub’ within the IPP network. By investing heavily in an extensive stock of piping materials, IPP Aberdeen is uniquely positioned to respond instantly to your inquiries, providing immediate access to the products you need.
Steve Tawse steve.tawse@ippgrp.com
amazing and we are now in a position to move into a bigger facility. We are planning to move in the second quarter of 2025 as we are now struggling more than ever for space.”
But his plans for nurturing the company do not stop with growth and expansion. MacAngus sees the future of NSES – historically a business based on the success of fossil fuels – in the renewable energy industry. In Aberdeen, many are choosing a hybrid strategy, hoping to take advantage of the large investments going into offshore wind, onshore infrastructure, and refurbishment and decommissioning.
“We are looking to get into the renewable sector. We have had various conversations with local companies, and we have had conversations with companies overseas,” he confirms. “We are in touch with the Chamber of Commerce in Aberdeen and we
This investment underscores our commitment to delivering swift and efficient solutions tailored to your needs.
In a joint statement, Steve and Niall express their immense pride: “We are incredibly proud of the rapid progress and impact that IPP Aberdeen has made in such a short time. Our investment in extensive stock and the dedication of our skilled team demonstrate our unwavering commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction.”
What sets IPP Aberdeen apart is the unparalleled combination of deep industry knowledge, honed skills, and vast experience. This, coupled with our extensive product range and supply solutions, offers transformative benefits to our customers. Our approach not only ensures that we stay ahead in the competitive global market but also empowers our clients with the advantages they need to thrive.
Niall Munro niall.munro@ippgrp.com
are trying to get signed up to various renewable courses to bring us more of an understanding of the requirements. Obviously, the renewable side, for us, is new but it’s not something we can’t do. It’s massive, and it is the way we want to go. We are talking to customers about carbon capture and how we can support that. Again, we have great feedback and we are on the approved vendor list of three big renewable companies. It is only a matter of time before we are fabricating for this sector. I like to think by Q4 2024 we will be providing support for these companies. Renewables is the company’s focus right now, it’s the space we need to get into, and we are putting a lot of effort into that.”
Utilising existing skills and infrastructure, NSES is perfectly positioned to grow in the renewables space. UK oil and gas fields in the
www.ippgrp.com
+44 (0) 1283 722 000
North Sea are in terminal decline and in 2023 the basin produced just 34 million tonnes of oil – the lowest figure since the establishment of production in the 70s. Finding a new direction is not only good for the environment, it is critical for business.
Core in the NSES service offering is fabrication and welding of structural steel and all types of piping components. The company provides offshore services for trades including welders and pipefitters. An impressive shop for exotic pipework – stainless steel, cunifer, super duplex and duplex – as well as structural is complemented by a separate facility for carbon steel piping. Expertise in engineering of structural steel and steel piping is required for effective building of renewable energy projects. As the big
names begin to rollout their projects, they only look for Aberdeen’s best. This is why MacAngus has placed such an emphasis on HSEQ accreditation, ISO certification, punctual delivery, and a strong project portfolio. Recent successes have seen the company deliver topside clamps and supports, subsea skids, anti-vibration clamps, deck hatches, flowhead packages, hydraulic power unit frames,
// WE ARE CONSTANTLY TRYING TO SPEND MONEY FOR THE RIGHT REASONS – TO GIVE US A BETTER DELIVERY AND QUICKER FABRICATION //
steel louvres, and much more.
“In Aberdeen, we are a top fabrication shop but there are certainly others,” he explains. “We feel as though we have a lot of competition when it comes to topside fabrication. We find that, during off-peak in Dec, Feb, and Jan, it can be really competitive with other fabricators.”
He says that rates drop drastically with rivals trying to get work in to keep their businesses ticking over. However, in peak times, all shops are busy and there is enough work for all to thrive. “We really only compete aggressively at the start of the year. We try to drive product quality – and our clients will agree. We are all about on time delivery and we have spent a lot of money on equipment to make ourselves more efficient. We have various new welding machines, and we have various new machines for prepping pipe to try and speed the process up. We are
constantly trying to spend money for the right reasons – to give us a better delivery and quicker fabrication.”
NSES is also a big investor in its supply chain, ensuring quality and certainty throughout. Not happy to settle for ‘good enough’, MacAngus insists on partnerships with suppliers rather than arm’s length contracts. He wants local connections wherever possible, and this helps with the fundamentals of highquality service delivery for clients.
“We use argon, propane, oxygen etc; we have a lot of gas on site - it is required for welding - and we use local suppliers for that,” he says. “We go through a lot of consumables and PPE. We also invest in local partners for flanges, steel, and pipe. Sometimes we do have to go further afield, into Europe, depending on the materials needed. Logistics, NDT testing, coatings etc are all vital for us and we have tight
01224 823555 • www.steadfast.co.uk sales.aberdeen@steadscott.co.uk
Burnside House, Burnside Drive, Dyce, Aberdeen, AB21 0HW
relationships with a number of local companies. These are fundamental in our delivery and we intentionally form close relationships so that we can work together, in partnership, and make things that bit easier.”
The restructuring of the business, a focus on sustainable expansion, and a constant drive to reinforce its status as a home for reliable craftsmen backed by leading technology continues to fuel the reputation of NSES. By making things easy for clients, the company does have to work hard to ride the waves but MacAngus is ambitious and positive about the future, despite uncertainty on longevity in the North Sea.
“We are a very good turnkey fabricator and we have had clients for a long time,” he says. “We get
repeat work and that is a very good sign for any business. We promote ourselves as a top end fabricator, but you pay for that service. Sometimes we cost more than others, but our clients pay for product quality, on time delivery, and the passion that our people have for these projects.
“We want to help our clients and we try to take the pain away from them – and there is a lot of pain right now with shut downs happening. That does put us in front of others as we genuinely want to deliver for people.
“Aberdeen is a niche, cutthroat market. You have to be careful with everything you do and every relationship you make as you have to make a profit. Right now, everybody is so busy so we can look to take work from those with the best engineering drawings and those who have a good
history and reputation,” he adds.
When the company completes its move to our new premises, and as it engages further on deployment in the renewable space, this is not a business looking over the shoulder or into the short-term. NSES is thinking about longterm, realistic, sustainable growth that will see it employ more local people and contribute further to the local economy.
“Our next steps are certainly to continue with our growth from a new space, taking on new industry sectors, and building our reputation even further,” MacAngus concludes.
PRODUCTION: David Hill
Taking on large-scale projects across the UK and Ireland, Jenkins & Davies Engineering is a leading mechanical engineering company providing pipework and steelwork fabrication, assembly and mechanical services for the energy, marine and utilities sectors. The company’s renowned integrity and realism, twinned with fine workmanship, is seeing its influence spread into projects across the UK and beyond, relays MD Richie Barnard.
//On the south coast of Wales, Pembrokeshire has for decades been one of the UK’s key industry hubs, and home to some of the largest, most complex refineries in Western Europe. Jenkins & Davies Engineering, reports MD Richie Barnard, was incepted based on the foresight of its founders in their bid to support such operations from a mechanical and fabrication standpoint,
way back in 1969. Although the company supported all the refineries within Pembrokeshire, it became firmly established at the old Texaco refinery in Pembroke. Although it has seen a change of ownership to Chevron, and now Valero, Jenkins & Davies remain one of the main mechanical maintenance contractors on site to this day some 50+ years later.
“At that time, the business ran its
operations out of some Portakabins just offsite,” Richie details of most humble roots, “before establishing our current premises at Waterloo. Today we provide a range of services to the petrochemical sector and work in routine maintenance, project and turnarounds, and are experienced in working on power generation and LNG facilities as well as mechanical services both on the harbour
infrastructure and the repair of ships.
“We deliver projects on time, within budget and to a very high standard, and we pride ourselves on being the best contractor wherever we work.”
The success enjoyed by the business over its long history has helped to shield it from the inevitable dips which transpire in a changeable sector. “When the decline of the oil industry in the early 2000s arose and refineries began moving out of Pembrokeshire, the business had grown to a level of success where it had to either shrink, or further expand,” Richie describes. In 2009, Jenkins & Davies was sold, and the new owners identified an avenue of expansion for the business in terms of UK growth.
“We are now considered as the number one contractor throughout the UK and Ireland,” Richie reveals, “and the first name on the team sheet whenever issues or maintenance problems crop up. As a result, we have also gone from a turnover of between £5-6 million to a peak of £22 million, and we continue to grow.
“We were singly-owned, with no corporate or similar behind us; this meant that the investors took a real chance on the growth opportunities they could see within the business, and, crucially, its people,” he says of a risk which has clearly paid off. “We truly believe that our business is all about our people and are very proud that 60% of our workforce has come through our own apprenticeship scheme, meaning that we can instil our core values at the start of their careers. As most of our senior management team and supervision have been home grown through apprenticeships, they have then been allowed to develop their relationships with clients, and as a result we are now stationed throughout the UK.”
Given its experience, as well as the clear signs as to the eventual trajectory of oil and gas as an industry, Jenkins & Davies Engineering has made concerted efforts to diversify and branch out, Richie stipulates. “One element that we have been very strong in exporting is mechanical expertise,” he states, “especially around spadeto-spade heat exchanger works - our
speed and accuracy are second to none, and with 4 Ariel Hydraulic and 2 Ariel air driven bundle extractors we are able to handle most situations when it comes to removing tube bundles in a safe and efficient manner.
“This was our first exploration into other clients outside of Pembrokeshire, and our skill in that area has engendered exponential growth in other services linked to it.
“Whilst we are confident that oil and gas will be around for the foreseeable yet, in the current climate it is incumbent on us to look to the stability of the company and its future profitability, and we are exploring further possibilities in offshore and other alternative energies, too, to give us growth and continuity of business for decades to come.”
Already deployed across the UK, the country’s borders may not be the limit for Jenkins & Davies Engineering’s dedicated family of core staff, explains Richie. “Part of our goal is to move some of the skills that we are exporting throughout the UK into Europe,” he
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relays. “What we will not do, however, is overstretch ourselves as a company. The reason that our clients keep coming back to us is our honesty, and our realism, and our unmatched ability to make sure that the jobs we take on are achievable to the standard and timescale desired and agreed.”
In what can be a cutthroat business, with numerous outfits vying for such significant contracts, Jenkins & Davies continues to gain lucrative contracts and business both further afield and close to home, including at the Valero refinery in Pembroke. Richie speaks to Energy Focus on day one of a turnaround as part of a major maintenance and overhaul outage at the site. Other Jenkins & Davies teams are stationed in the midst of planning at Essar’s Stanlow refinery, with another large-scale
turnaround to follow in February.
“There is one downside to being very busy,” Richie shares, “in that we sometimes have to tell clients that we are unable to support them; we take on what we can handle and successfully deliver, on each occasion, and I refuse to overstretch the company.
“Clients often tell me that this honesty is what keeps us at the forefront of the industry,” he qualifies.
“The moment that we take on too much, and we are unable to put the trademark J&D ethos into the job, our offering is diluted and we become no different from some of our competitors.
“Our greatest strength is the quality of our workforce,” Richie reiterates. “A key part of our ethos is that our clients’ success is our success, and people buy into that philosophy when joining. One of the real assets of being based
in Pembroke was being surrounded by skilled, productive and willing employees who simply wanted to work, and we retain that strength as we spread our wings into the whole of the UK.” Richie concludes that this peerless combination is what keeps this business and these projects consistently landing at Jenkins & Davies’ door.
“People want us back every time,” he states proudly. “Our experience, ingenuity and our efforts are what clients keep calling us ahead of anyone else. We have the utmost confidence and faith that we can deliver exactly what we say, every time, and our workmanship will be of the highest quality.”
PRODUCTION: David Hill
At Aberdeen’s Katoni Engineering, the future looks bright as this multidisciplinary firm takes on new projects in new industries and new geographies. Creating success through delivery of ‘Katoni way’ – a deep-rooted company culture, the business has positioned itself ahead of others, and CEO James Bream explains how this will be taken forward.
//Aberdeen stands at a crossroads as the energy transition sparks economic growth and development in new energy solutions alongside the expected volume of exploration and production in the UK Continental Shelf.
For the UK and Aberdeen to maximise their role in this transition it seems obvious that the skills developed in oil and gas will form part of the energy mix for the next generation. Aberdeen is laden with talented people, the city is a strategic hub for delivery, innovation and development, and the legacy of oil and gas means there is capacity currently in place to facilitate a healthy future. However, that successful future is not guaranteed.
Aberdeen and the UK will compete globally to lead on electrification, new energy solutions, and optimisation of low emissions power. The city
and its businesses are in a fight for talent with places like Houston, Amsterdam, Singapore and Dubai.
Success will need clever economic thinking, a supportive government and a city that retains people based on things to do and places to go.
One thing is clear: Aberdeen’s engineering skill base remains one of the world’s most recognised, and one which is agile and adaptable.
Katoni Engineering is the perfect example of a company able to operate in ‘traditional’ offshore energy spaces while applying creative thinking to adapt and grow.
First incorporated in 2010, the company began its life as an EPC player in 2016. Now it sits in the heart of Aberdeen’s West End as an awardwinning engineering consultancy that specialises in energy sector projects.
Recent successes are as diverse as
consulting for the North Sea Transition Authority on the future of the UKCS and electrification, to safety related work in the water industry. In between sits a core EPC offering with scopes covering all aspects of multi-discipline engineering for global companies.
The company now has subsidiaries in the Netherlands and Mexico, with active plans for further expansion.
A simple ethos to delivery excellent customer service something Katoni feels is perhaps a forgotten aspect of EPC companies in the energy sector. However, it is how Katoni acts internally which is what sets it apart from others.
The team at Katoni are asked to act as an extension of customers. There is no transactional approach, it’s not a buy and sell operation. CEO James Bream tells Energy Focus that ‘the Katoni Way’ –a documented set of values and cultural principles - guides every interaction
with customers, and this leads to long standing partnerships and sustainable operations that will endure all the way through the energy transition.
“It defines separately what we expect of team members but, importantly, what they can demand from the business, its owners, and management team. It is this definition that makes Katoni’s culture a little different; it is not a set of words on a wall, it is a set of tangible things, actions, requirements and it is actually measurable.
“Katoni is a family-owned business. We are independent and that allows us to drive our own agenda and focus on long-term and sustainable growth.
“Everything centres around the Katoni Way and how we deliver our customer service. What we do and how we do it are the pillars on which we stand,” he says.
Bream and the Katoni team are not fazed by the changing nature of the Aberdeen landscape. In fact, the Katoni Way dictates that the company’s culture and mentality embraces the change. As long as customer service levels remain extraordinarily high, Bream is confident that this multidisciplinary engineering firm can flourish.
“Being a family business allows us
to do things our own way,” he says. “The oil and gas industry is known for having very high attrition in the workforce but we have focussed on looking after our people and we spend a lot of time socialising together, creating great packages, and supporting local charities and community activities, all with the view of making Katoni a really enjoyable place to work. The reason we do that is because we care about people and we know that if we can keep good people then we will have a consistent level of customer service.”
Katoni breaks customer service into three parts. “How do we deliver high quality internal customer service; that is the very basis of what we do, looking after each other in terms of the work we do for each other, and that is very important with multidisciplinary work,” explains Bream. “Then we have to deliver exceptional external customer service. And the final nirvana is getting to know our customers as people. We document those things in the ‘Katoni
Way’, and this sets out what we are as an employer, what we expect from people, our operating philosophy, and how we deliver customer service. That is our part of our culture, doing this consistently helps us grow but we do it because we care about the outcome.”
Through this cultural grounding, the company has created an atmosphere of excellence and this resonates with customers who return to the business again and again, even choosing Katoni over larger international firms because of the human nature that underpins relationships that are fostered.
“Starting and growing a business is hard,” admits Bream. “We compete against global companies who are sometimes 100 times larger than us. Our aim is to be more responsive, more consistent than them in terms of customer service. The team have the freedom to make customer centric decisions and manage short and long-term commercial
success with that in mind.”
Responding to the market, the company has moved beyond its traditional focus on oil and gas and is now taking on projects across various industries as part of a diversification strategy. But Katoni has an advantage; it can take projects from concept all the way to execution – unusual for most engineering houses that either choose concept or execution but not both. “Our engineering service is a full multi discipline offering and we have all the types of engineers you need –structural, piping, instrument, controls and automation, process, safety etc. We have a wide group of skills within the team as engineers but it’s also important that we have a breadth of both logical and creative thinkers.”
These skills helped the company excel in the modification and optimising of topsides in the UK oil and gas sector. From here, the company onboarded safety, power optimisation, and power supply and demand understanding,
which has been critical as it moves into new sectors and geographies.
“We will continue to secure new clients in our core market, which is topside engineering, that is happening simply because our reputation is strong. However, we are also looking to move outside of the oil industry, using some of our services like power studies and safety work, to secure new work. It might sound surprising, but this is partly being driven by our younger team members who are hungry to learn, experience different sectors and work types. It is important to me we offer that latitude, and it helps dispel the myth that young people don’t want to work in oil and gas, they just need variety and to have a safe future path.
“We now have clients in the whisky and water industries and have been active in onshore industrial plants.
“Anything that needs lots of power or has fluid moving through it is something we will understand and that is why we can thrive when new and
challenging engineering problems face us not only in the oil and gas industry.”
Work in oil and gas will not stop, and the company is busy in West Africa and across Europe with energy businesses pushing Katoni to help drive efficiency and improvement. A significant recent development comes in the Netherlands where Katoni is opening a new office to help grow the brand on the continent.
“We have restructured the business with one team focussed on growth and one focussed on delivery,” Bream details. “The growth team is aiming to maintain customer satisfaction and aftersales care, bringing in skills from other industries. The whole team will remain focussed on delivery, and that should allow us to make those incremental steps into other industries. Within our core market, we are seeing growth as deadlines on emissions reductions come quickly, driven by governments. Those can be directly reducing emissions or optimisation
plant – producing the same amount but for the same or less emissions.”
With industries changing quickly, the need for diverse engineering knowledge is vital and this is why big-name organisations partner with companies like Katoni. “Emissions reducing projects have become more important to us because they are more important to our clients,” says Bream. “We have worked for the UK Oil and Gas Regulator and we are retained by them to work on these types of projects, companies also trust our expertise and creativity, but also know we get that commercial outcomes are rounded in finance, economic, safety and environmental outcomes.”
Thanks to its agile and nimble nature, and the ability to make decisions quickly, Katoni has flourished since its establishment. Today, the company is a lead sponsor of Aberdeen Women’s Football Club,
always looking to use the brand for positivity in the city. But it hasn’t been easy to get to where it is now.
“It was difficult to achieve profitability and get our foot in the door in the early days,” admits Bream. “In the oil industry, word of mouth works very well because Aberdeen is a small place. We have managed to achieve more than 20% growth every year since 2019. We are forecasting 30% growth this year.”
Obviously, the period through 2020 and the Covid pandemic was a challenge. But, the Katoni Way encouraged learning and development above despair. The business retained all staff – including apprentices who continued to learn while the whole team shared a financial burden to allow that because the team felt it was the right thing to do. Bream is proud of
the way the company bounced back.
“It was difficult and we had to take some tough decisions. It wasn’t just the cash and business implications. We learned a lot about people and how they feel. Accepting that everyone has a different view was hugely important,” he says. “We tried to stick to the standards we had set and what was reassuring was that after the first lockdown, business came back very quickly. It showed me that our foundations were very strong. Since then, the story has been one of growth with clients coming to us for small jobs and getting bigger and bigger.”
This is where the team of more than 100 people come into their own. They deliver the Katoni Way and interact with clients as partners. Whether technicians offshore in the North Sea, or engineers in the Aberdeen office,
all have been given a structure to do the very best work at all times.
“I am not an engineer,” smiles Bream, “albeit I have worked on major capital projects in other sectors. I think it was entertaining for a few of our competitors when they saw an economist running an engineering firm. Ultimately, there are few things in running the business that are critical for me. Firstly, allowing our managers the freedom to take cognisance of the fact that we all have families and personal lives. We have a whole set of principles around health including flexible working and mental health wellbeing, and we really stretch those things to the max. We want people to be productive, and we measure that, but we value real customer service. We think that you stand or fall not on your profit but on your ability to retain and
© Katoni Engineering
grow your customer base. Those are my key focus areas. Succeeding with our customers will delivery profitability as an outcome, that’s the end it is the outcome of trusting our process. ”
While nurturing the customer base, Katoni is also developing a supply chain that is the best in the business. Choosing Aberdeen-based partners where possible, quality is the only measure on which Katoni decides on where to deploy spend. To ensure ongoing relationships, the company regularly interacts and integrates other companies – again, part of the Katoni Way.
“We have a wide supply chain because we deliver all sorts of projects and we need brilliant support from others. Everything from technology and automation, controls and instrumentation, fabricated goods,
to highly complex packages – very large and very expensive pieces of equipment. Sometimes we cannot procure what we need locally. We regularly visit our suppliers and catch up with them about projects. We spend time together to understand how we can growth together. We initiated a supplier day each year where we give awards and recognise performance. This sits alongside our staff awards to embody our ‘One Team’ mentality, we are together in the changing room. We also encourage our supply chain to participate in our charitable activity and community engagement, and that is really successful,” stresses Bream, saying that ultimately customers judge Katoni on the performance of its supply chain.
Clearly, Aberdeen is not down and out. It is certainly not going anywhere in terms of its importance to the local
and national economy, and the skills nurtured here remain in demand – in oil and gas and across the wider energy and industrial space. Importantly, Bream will harness the Katoni way to continue driving growth and innovation.
“This year, we have introduced growth team. It’s time to be more visible and bold now we have our foundations strongly set. Ours is not your typical growth story of acquisition. I would say it has been a story of sanity over vanity and that is very sustainable, keeping the core of who we are.”
Safer, greener, and more efficient is the goal, and this Aberdeen business will continue to deliver, all the way through the transition.
PRODUCTION: David Hill
The Victoria Group is investing in electrification, hydrogen power, sustainability, and circularity. As big-name customers put out the call for emissions reductions through their supply chains, this is a group that can answer. Director Steve Marshall talks to Energy Focus about an exciting time for this historic organisation.
//With six strategic ports positioned across the UK, the Victoria Group is an operation of national importance. Through its gateways arrive critical materials to keep industry running. Exiting its harbours go Great British exports for markets all over the world. The Port of Seaham, Mersey Wharf, Port of Boston, Sharpness Dock, Corporation Wharf, and Victoria Wharf are engines of economic activity for the country.
But as the energy transition continues, and environmental targets edge ever closer, those moving through Victoria Group’s territory are asking for new and different. Customers want cleaner, greener, more efficient. They demand that the company does its bit to reduce environmental challenges as part of a much wider ecosystem.
“We have the understanding and responsibility, and we demonstrate to our customers that we are taking this seriously,”
stresses Director, Steve Marshall
To bring improvement and enhancement to the group – in line with the needs of the industry – Marshall is driving a new campaign labelled ‘Future Facing’. This project is more than a single investment or a baseless boast.
“Our customers are demanding more from us and we certainly want to deliver,” says Marshall, a versatile industry leader with extensive experience in senior management for the Royal Navy. “Environmentally, we absolutely do not want to be behind the curve because we know that will come with a bigger financial burden.”
The relatively small familyowned company has already started making an impact, and Future Facing has delivered impressive results.
The campaign is focused on environmental improvements that benefit the organisation and its
Steve Marshall, Director
// WE HAVE THE UNDERSTANDING AND RESPONSIBILITY, AND WE DEMONSTRATE TO OUR CUSTOMERS THAT WE ARE TAKING THIS SERIOUSLY //
efficiencies. From electrification to modernisation of equipment to emissions reduction, Future Facing impacts the entire Victoria Group.
Marshall says the group had to understand its current position and map where it wanted to get to. Working alongside customers, industry bodies, and local government the Victoria Group quickly devised a strategy that would provide maximum impact.
“We have been working really hard and investing heavily in solar, across every port,” explains Marshall. “That hasn’t happened overnight. The different arrays total around 740kw of power over five sites. And we are transmitting any surplus generated green energy back to the grid.”
This investment has helped reduce Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions across operations, and the group has a number of other initiatives that feed into this goal. New transportation solutions, new crane power, efficiency investments, and investments into electrification and sustainability are also part of the Future Facing project.
Across its fleet of haulage trucks, the company has invested in new Euro VI diesel engines, vastly improving on the traditional diesel offering. Loaders have been fitted with mini hydrogen plants to remove NOX emissions by >60% and particulate soot by >90%.
Fishing vessels have also been tasked with ‘fishing for litter’ collecting litter and ghost nets from around the fishing
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Continued from page 38
grounds and harbour, with Victoria Group organising safe and responsible disposal. New low emissions cranes have also been installed in a significant investment, desktop PCs have been replaced with laptops, all Cathode
// LIEBHERR ARE FORWARD THINKING WITH THEIR REDUCED EMISSIONS. WE NOW HAVE ONE CRANE THAT CAN DO THE JOB OF TWO OLDER CRANES DELIVERING HIGHER EFFICIENCY //
Ray Tube (CRT) monitors have been removed, and all lighting will soon be LED. At the same time, the company has put in place smart monitoring to keep careful track of energy consumption.
“All of the ports we operate in have seen vast investment in their handling equipment, this has revolutionised our ability and energy footprint,” says Marshall. “Liebherr are forward thinking with their reduced emissions. We now have one crane that can do the job of two older cranes delivering higher efficiency. We save more than 50% of the fuel and these cranes are much more efficient.”
Longer-term, the plan is for widespread electrification of the quays across all ports to allow for charging of vessels as Scope 3 emissions are addressed.
“Electric cranes are still not yet feasible and we expect these new cranes to be used for around 15
years while we continue with wider electrification projects,” Marshall admits. “We are also looking at battery storage which is challenging because of the life and price of the battery.”
Currently, a feasibility study is underway to chart the course for full electrification. “We are looking at Scope 3 specifically. We want to give vessels the ability to plug in,” confirms Marshall.
“The environmental benefit remains high for us and we are engaging with Net Zero Marine to understand how we best go about that. But this could address Scope 3 for us.”
To ensure long-term sustainability and security as a leading supply chain provider and port operator, Victoria Group regularly invests in infrastructure, beyond the Future Facing campaign, to ensure the smooth and efficient flow of goods through its gateways.
“The solar project has been large and expensive,” admits Marshall. “One of our largest arrays is in the Port of Boston, but also at that port there is a flood defence scheme which is ongoing. The goal at completion is for Boston to not flood for 100 years.”
This project will help to protect 14,000 properties as well as the harbour area and all of its assets. A multi firm development sees improvements to existing infrastructure including a 300 tonne, 25m-wide rising sector gate and miles of steel sheet piles to reinforce river embankments. In 2013, Boston was flooded causing major stress, damage, and impact on life and business.
At Seaham Harbour, inner dock gates are currently being upgraded, and the outer dock gates are planned for upgrade next year. Currently, Victoria Group is vital in the supply chain for a
With over 30 years experience and a proven track record of contracts from 1,000sqm to 78,000sqm
5 Premier League Football Grounds
Power Stations
Tungsten Mines
Various Industrial Buildings
Qualified in Asbestos Removal
Currently taking care of industrial roofing solutions for The Victoria Wharf Group, on 5 of their docks.
number of big-name manufacturers. “We handle bulk including itemised dry bulk, break bulk etc. It differs in every port. And that is why our facilities must be top class,” says Marshall.
“Across all of these projects we are spending millions of pounds,” he explains, adding that over the past few years 50% of outgoing product at Boston have been moved from road to rail to make further emissions savings and improve in-transit times for customers.
Despite the history and heritage that is soaked into the sites within the Victoria Group, there is a clear and obvious willingness to look forward, changing and adapting at all times to improve for the benefit of customers. Becoming greener and cleaner, and putting sustainability at the bow of all decision making, allows
Victoria Group to fly its flag high.
“We must be environmentally attractive to our customers,” concludes Marshall. “We have vast competition and our customers are striving for a greener and better future. Our emissions are ours, but we know we fit into shipping Scope 1. We know our part, and we now know how we can contribute. We continue to do that effectively and that will not change.”
The more our customers ask for change, the more Victoria Group will explore. Marshall is confident, and the group remains buoyant in difficult times.
PRODUCTION: David Hill
A key player in the electricity sector in the Southern African region, since 1998 Mozambique Transmission Company (MOTRACO) has been responsible for massive contributions to the development of Mozambique and Southern Africa through the provision and maintenance of an effective, reliable electricity transmission network. “We set out to be the preferred partner in power transmission interconnectivity in Southern Africa,” introduces GM Aderito Manso de Sousa.
//Mozambique has the largest power generation potential of all Southern African countries, with Power Africa estimating that it could generate 187 gigawatts from coal, hydro, gas, wind, and solar as the government aims to achieve universal electrification by 2030. Significant strides made toward fulfilling this goal, as the figure leapt from 34% in 2021 to 48% in 2022, with expansion driven by industry and business growth.
Closing in on 30 years of operations, MOTRACO emerged at the close of the millennium as the result of a strategic partnership between three electricity companies
from neighbouring countries, namely Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM), Eskom Holding Limited (Eskom) of South Africa and Eswatini Electricity Company (EEC) of Eswatini (Swaziland). 1997 had seen the establishment/ agreement of an electricity tariff for the Mozal aluminium facility in Mozambique; with neither Eskom nor EDM able to cater to the power supply, a special purpose company had to be created to solve the conundrum.
“The collaboration between these three companies was motivated by the need to improve the electricity transmission infrastructure in the region and strengthen energy
integration between the countries,” MOTRACO explains, with each of the parent companies bringing its own experience, resources and knowledge to the venture, in turn enabling the establishment of the network. According to the company, “MOTRACO continues to play a critical role in the Mozambican and Eswatini economy through maintaining a reliable transmission network.”
MOTRACO’s remit today is clear, outlines GM Aderito Manso de Sousa. “We purchase power from Eskom in South Africa for sale to the Mozal
Aluminium Foundry in Mozambique, while we also transport power from Eskom to EDM and EEC,” he states.
“In addition, our organisation is responsible for managing and ensuring the continued operation of a cross-border high-speed digital telecommunications infrastructure.
“Working in conjunction with Mozambique, Eswatini and South Africa, we are committed to providing highquality and reliable connectivity to this geographic region.” MOTRACO’s task is one of the most complex imaginable in the context of a global transmission line length which is estimated to have reached 5,615,818 Circuit Kilometres
(Ckm) by the end of 2022 and which is forecast to grow to 6,666,393Ckm by 2028. Mozambique itself had some 6,357Ckm of line length in 2022, predicted at the end of last year to rise to close to 9000Ckm by 2028.
Through two high-voltage transmission lines at 400 kV, MOTRACO details, the company guarantees the continuous and uninterrupted supply of high-quality electrical energy.
Its implementation has paved the way for the realisation of the mega Mozal project in Beluluane, Maputo Province, making Mozambique one of the largest exporters of aluminium to the global market.
Transporting its critical electricity throughout the territory, both to the Mozal Aluminium Smelter and to EDM and EEC for further distribution to other industries and customers
// MOTRACO PLAYS A CRITICAL ROLE IN THE MOZAMBICAN AND ESWATINI ECONOMY THROUGH MAINTAINING A RELIABLE TRANSMISSION NETWORK //
in Maputo, Southern Mozambique and Eswatini respectively has been a story replete with success for MOTRACO over the last nearly 25 years, including top honours in the 25th edition of the Mozambique Top 100 Companies list, reflecting its notable
// OUR ROLE IS TO ENSURE THAT OUR CUSTOMERS RECEIVE THE HIGHEST QUALITY SERVICE FROM US WITH RELIABILITY AT THE FOREFRONT //
position in the business landscape.
Conducted by KPMG Mozambique, the awards highlighted MOTRACO as an undisputed leader in key areas such as turnover profitability, demonstrating its exceptional financial efficiency, as well as third position in operational efficiency and impressive net results reaching MZN985 million.
Working with infrastructure more than 20 years in age presents obvious challenges, and MOTRACO is regularly called upon to intervene and find solutions to ensure that supply to customers remains continuous in both quality and quantity. “Our activities are supported by an infrastructure consisting of two MOTRACO-owned 400kV substations and 132 and 400kV transmission lines, whose
operation and maintenance are also guaranteed by us,” Sousa explains.
“Our role is essentially to ensure that our three customers receive the highest quality service from us, with reliability at the forefront, and to actively ensure that our lines are always available, wellmaintained and fully functional.”
“The business model adopted by MOTRACO constitutes a regional and international reference in terms of investment, operation and maintenance of electrical energy transmission systems and data transmission via optical fibre,” Sousa offers.
Whilst undertaking its vital work, MOTRACO remains, “committed to
Specialist in design, supply, procurement, and construction of transmission lines, 132 kV to 765 kV
Established in 1982, we have a long history of providing peace of mind and quality services to companies in various provinces with the highest level of safety, at fair and market competitive prices.
We are happy to complete the 275 kV substation bypass with MOTRACO in Matola
Approved Eskom EPC partner
Approved MOTRACO EPC partner
the highest ethical and professional conduct, protection of the environment and social responsibility,” Sousa says.
“The quality and commitment of employees and partners in maintaining MOTRACO’s record are key to the company, and we continue to invest in developing them through training.
COMMITTED
“MOTRACO also aims to become an effective operator in the region and supports social upliftment projects across the three countries in which it operates,” he goes on, and the provision of water infrastructure at the Namaacha district’s Maternity Hospital and sponsorship of a Home Economics laboratory at a primary school in Eswatini were just two of last year’s highlights under this umbrella.
“MOTRACO endeavours to promote environmental preservation while facilitating development in operating areas,” says Sousa of the company’s ecological bent. “We recognise that we have to cohabit with other stakeholders and therefore it is important to contribute to environmental preservation.”
Looking to the future, Sousa explains that the aims remain identical
for MOTRACO. “In the medium to longterm, new generation opportunities within Mozambique are being pursued by various developers, and MOTRACO aims to play an important role in wheeling this energy to Southern Africa,” he relays.
“For now, though, we will continue to strive for excellence in quality, and make sure that we serve our clients in the best way possible and that they receive exactly what they deserve and expect to assure health and growth of MOTRACO that has defined as an organisation over the past many years.”
PRODUCTION: James Redwell
Inchcape Shipping Services is advancing its position as an industry leader by growing its services in key markets around the world. New offices, new facilities, and new partnerships are helping to power this historic player to all new levels of success.
//Connecting the world through trade is the backbone of Inchcape Shipping Services. This major organisation, of international importance, traces its roots way back to 1847 when two seafarers from Scotland formed a partnership to carry mail and other cargo on steamers around the British Empire, mainly working for the East India Company.
Today, the company is very different but still embodies the ambition and global thinking of its history. Now, 253 offices in 60 countries, manned by more than 3100 people, help to keep the world moving.
With a vision of connecting the world, and helping customers to trade successfully by making better decisions in every port, everywhere, Inchcape shipping has been on a growth journey recently, acquiring new companies and building on success at various sites around the world.
In June 2024, the major announcement came that the company had struck a deal with the Grieg Group
to acquire Grieg Logistics AS. Looking to strengthen its position in the Nordics, and specifically across Norway, Inchcape was excited by the heritage and quality of Grieg Logistics – which operates terminals at Tønsberg, Mosjøen and Skålevik, with offices in Tønsberg, Larvik, Bergen, Mongstad, Kristiansund and Mosjøen and a ship agency presence along the Norwegian coastline. This growth in Norway will further enhance the Inchcape reputation as an industry leader in tanker, cruise, dry bulk, liner, government, ship manager, and offshore sectors.
“Inchcape and Grieg Logistics have enjoyed a long-standing partnership, first formalised in 2019,” said Inchcape Shipping Services CEO, Philippe Maezelle. “The partnership facilitated the sharing of technologies and the expansion of port agency support in Norway. We are extremely excited to welcome the Grieg Logistics team into our organisation. We look forward to providing even greater service and coverage to our combined customer base.”
Initially, little will change as the pair integrate. Greig Logistics will operate under the same banner and CEO Stig Trygve Andersen will continue to lead the team.
“Inchcape Shipping Services and Grieg Logistics complement each other perfectly, and we eagerly anticipate the continued growth of our business areas within Inchcape,” he said.
In Norway, the company is now able to offer better value, bigger knowledge, more services, and solutions that others cannot.
The mindset of constant growth is evident across Inchcape and recent success in Singapore, Trinidad and Tobago, Oman, the Philippines, and Chile are indicative of the way the company will enhance its value for clients.
In the Middle East, the energy industry is prevalent and shipping is largely centred around oil and gas.
Continues on page 52
Since starting in 2011, Navigator Shipping Company (NSC) has become a leader in vessel management and logistics, especially in Libya’s energy sector. Founded by Captain Tarek Shokri, NSC has strong connections with Libyan port authorities, making us the best choice for companies working in the region.
In the energy industry, trust, safety, and expertise are key. Our skilled team ensures that every operation, from clearing vessels to handling cargo, is done with care and precision. With offices in all Libyan ports and strong partnerships with the National Oil Corporation (NOC) and other major energy companies, we are trusted by leading companies like SHELL, ExxonMobil, EQUINOR, LITASCO, ENOC, UNIPEC, GUNVOR, GLENCORE, SARAS, and SOCAR.
We provide a wide range of services tailored for the energy sector. Whether you are an owner, charterer, or trader, our team offers services such as husbandry, stevedoring, and acting as a protective agent. We protect your assets and make sure port operations are safe and efficient,helping you save time and money.
NSC is certified with ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, and ISO 45001:2018, as well as TRACE, showing that we meet high international standards for quality and transparency, and we are also active members of BIMCO and FONASBA. Our strong financial position and updated records further prove our reliability and our solid partnerships in Libya’s ports.
With offices in every major Libyan port and deep local knowledge, Navigator Shipping Company is ready to support your vessel operations at any time. We handle all your documents, cargo stowage, and payments, ensuring we follow all regulations and protect your interests.
Navigator Shipping Company is setting new standards in maritime logistics in Libya’s energy sector. By choosing NSC, you gain a trustworthy partner committed to protecting your interests and delivering top-quality service. Trust us with your vessel operations for a smooth, safe, and efficient experience.
For more information, contact us at Info@navigator.ly and see the Navigator Difference.
Continued from page 50
Oman is a major oil and gas exporter with 5.2 billion barrels of crude and 24 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves. In this space, Inchcape has significant expertise and Inchcape Shipping Services Country Manager for Oman, Tejas Parmar, is confident about the future thanks to an unrivalled service portfolio.
“The country’s proximity to major east-west shipping lanes and the Strait of Hormuz, which is a vital chokepoint in oil transport, makes it a crucial player in global maritime trade. Approximately 20% of the world’s petroleum passes through this narrow waterway,” he says.
“Without a doubt,” he adds, “the country’s busiest trade centres around the oil and gas industry, which forms the backbone of the economy and lion’s share of Oman’s export revenue. As one of the largest crude producers in the Middle East it is fortunate to have substantial oil reserves. Natural gas is both exported and used domestically for energy and industrial
purposes. There’s also a well-developed petrochemicals sector, creating additional value and export products.
“The major benefit for customers of working with us end-to-end is they avoid a fragmented supply chain working with different agents and suppliers in different ports; whereas we offer the same service excellence across all our stations. Our 24/7 operations can help reduce overall costs through efficient coordination of local vendors and supporting services.”
In South America, Inchcape opened its newest office at the Port of Arica in Chile in September. The northernmost port on the continent and strategically located alongside key regional markets, this position offers Inchcape and customers local knowledge from Port Agent Rodrigo Narvaez and opportunities across multiple industries including bulk, fuel, and cruise.
“This expansion is a significant milestone for Inchcape, positioning the company at the heart of South America’s northernmost port,
close to the Peru border, and at the gateway to an expansive hinterland encompassing parts of Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil,” the company said.
In a similar vein, the company launched, in June, its enhanced offering in Trinidad and Tobago. A new office and new warehouse facilities form part of a strategic expansion in the Caribbean to support the offshore market. The office in Chaguaramas and the warehouse in Point Lisas optimise the storage and handling of spares, provisions, and equipment, ensuring that Inchcape continues to set the standard for seamless operations and cargo management.
“With a clear vision for the future, our new facilities in Chaguaramas and Point Lisas are strategically positioned to serve the demand in the bustling hub,” said an ambitious and excited Trinidad and Guyana’s Marine Services Manager, Kishan Ramoutar. “The Chaguaramas Bay area, known for its comprehensive repair yard and drydock facilities, plays a crucial role
in the commercial maritime industry, particularly in the offshore oil and gas sector. Our presence here is a testament to Inchcape’s dedication to supporting these critical operations with unparalleled expertise and efficiency.”
Unlike other parts of the world, southeast Asia continues to achieve economic growth amidst global challenges. Booming populations and strong international relations allow countries in the region to partner with worldwide organisations, especially in logistics.
Inchcape holds a robust position across the APAC region but has furthered its strength by investing in the Philippines and Singapore.
With a new office in Manila, Inchcape is looking to support activity in the offshore energy sector as the Philippines invests in projects including wind and oil and gas.
“Recognising the array of opportunities in the Philippines, Inchcape is positioning itself at the forefront of service provision for offshore wind projects, cable laying, oil and gas developments, and extensive reclamation undertakings. These initiatives underscore their dedication to being a pivotal player in the growth of the maritime industry in the Philippines,” the company said.
General Manager, Jonathan Guanzon is tasked with building relationships across government services as well as military, energy, and bulk transport. The new office will support operations at the major ports: Manila, Bataan, Batangas, Subic, and Palawan.
In Singapore, the company is an industry leader with a range of services on offer for clients. A major hub on the global shipping map, Singapore has opportunities for growth that are often unmatched by other geographies. Inchcape Singapore General Manager, Benjamin Oh, is well aware of the potential in his
region, also overseeing work at ports in Indonesia - Batam and Karimun.
The full Inchcape suite is offered from Singapore, and the local team is innovative in its approach to problem solving.
“As a one-stop shop, customers can get everything they need without having to deal with multiple vendors and service providers,” says Oh. “In fact, many in the industry don’t seem to be aware that we aren’t just simply an agency. We provide integrated logistics and supply chain activities, including air or sea freight, survey and inspection (S&I), warehousing, end-to-end project solutions, sustainable port operations (SPO) as well as Disbursement Account (DA) management (OneCape DA), to name just a few. One of our key strengths is that we’re always able to find solutions for our clients, even for unique requests.”
With a deep understanding of offshore energy and ship agency services, this strategic centre can work across industries for companies with a broad scope of operation.
“Compared to our peers we
have a very wide global footprint, with a lot of customers based here in Singapore as well, so they can engage immediately with our teams to explore innovative solutions not only within Southeast Asia but the entire APAC region and across the world, enabling them to grow their business with a strong global partner based locally in Singapore. In addition, we have very large volumes, so we can offer discount rates for hotels, launches, towage, de-slopping and transport,” says Oh.
All of this growth comes through the innovation and forward-thinking mindset of Inchcape’s people. The company leverages the strength of local agents and regional partners, building lasting relationships, and offering knowledge of a port that few others can claim. Ultimately, Inchcape is on track to achieve its mission of connecting partners to a smoother, smarter ocean, all thanks to its investments in best practice.
PRODUCTION: James Redwell
The remarkable team at Forze Hydrogen Racing has been refreshed with an all new intake of bright minds that will further enhance our understanding of hydrogen fuel cell performance at the top end of competitive motoring. The exciting initiative is busy driving interest in hydrogen power while innovating new system to go further, faster, more efficiently.
©
//Now is a busy time for the young team at Forze Hydrogen Racing. This ambitious and innovative group is made up mostly of students at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.
The goal of the team is to showcase hydrogen as the fuel of the future but in a creative and otherwise unseen way. The Forze IX is the team’s prized asset – a
// A TEAM FILLED WITH SUCH PASSION, ENTHUSIASM, AND DETERMINATION IS WHAT MAKES FORZE A SUCCESS //
powerful concept racing car, driven by a zero-emissions hydrogen fuel cell.
The onboard fuel cell is safe and reliable, and capable of delivering significant power. It can accelerate from 0 – 100 km/h in less than three seconds. The top speed is 300 km/h with the fuel cell delivering 240 kW, 327 hp.
Previously, the team spoke to Energy Focus about presenting hydrogen as a fuel source in a unique way. Demonstrating the power of hydrogen to industry, businesses, and the public has always been challenging, but when you have a futuristic, bright, and exclusive racing car on hand, onlookers take note.
Many private companies have joined the project, using it as a case study to test and enhance ideas as hydrogen moves into the mainstream
as part of the energy transition. The likes of Shell, Kistler, IBM, Fischer, EY, and CHART (among many more) are some of the global businesses that support Forze, which takes its name from the Formula Zero competition.
But it is the students that sit at the heart of this team. Originally established in 2007, Forze has worked on go-karts all the way up to Le Mans prototypes capable of competing in top races. Now on it’s ninth iteration, the car that the team is developing is world leading. Literally, no where else on earth is there a racing car of this sophistication in existence.
The team is refreshed each year and the latest group – students breaking their studies with a year in industry
– is headed by Team Manager, Ryan Zondag. He took over alongside his 30 voluntary colleagues in August 2024.
“Over the course of two weeks, all the knowledge and information about the team were diligently transferred to the new team. Everyone put in a lot of effort to absorb as much information as possible,” he said of what is a new era for team Forze.
Quickly attention turned to the project at hand and the many events the team must attend to drive publicity and attention around the project.
“Following the handover between the teams, Team XVIII’s first event was the 75th anniversary of Breda Airport, Seppe. Breda Airport and Forze have always enjoyed a strong collaboration. Our latest cars have both been tracktested on the airport strip. This is
possible because the airport closes to air traffic at 20:00, giving us the opportunity to test,” explains Zondag.
“We presented the Forze XIII at the 75th anniversary celebration and during the event, a variety of classic planes and cars were exhibited, all coordinated by Michiel van Dijk. Although the event was, as we say, not entirely in our lane due to its focus on
classic planes and cars, the Forze VIII still attracted a lot of visitors throughout the day, all showing genuine interest.”
This has long been a strategy of Forze. Fuelling interest and pulling in curious minds, creating opportunities to share the potential hydrogen is how the brand and the industry gains traction. Not only important from a racing perspective, this entire project has
become a pathfinder for how powerful hydrogen can be in a transport setting.
“At Forze, we stand for a sustainable future for mobility,” the team states.
“A team filled with such passion, enthusiasm, and determination is what makes Forze a success. That, and also the many years of knowledge and
//IT IS FORZE’S GOAL TO SHIFT TOWARDS ENDURANCE RACING. WE BELIEVE THAT IS WHERE THE POWER OF HYDROGEN LIES //
growth that Forze has seen so far.
“With the Forze IX, we aim to compete in the GT Class of the Supercar Challenge, the fastest racing division. We will be on the grid with top-of-the-line production cars in our newest endeavour, such as Porsches and Lamborghinis. The pressure is on, to say the least.”
When the latest car can again prove its efficiency and safety on the track, the opportunities for further rollout are endless. Partner organisations can take their findings into the wider automotive sector, and when, inevitably, hydrogen is the chosen fuel for powering movement, the
knowledge developed at Forze will help to demonstrate possibilities at the top end of performance. The team is clear that relatively short races, however successful, are a stepping stone to a longer-term vision.
“The Forze IX is built to keep growing and innovating, so that is what we are going to do. In the future, it is Forze’s goal to shift towards endurance racing. We believe that is where the power of hydrogen lies.”
Thankfully, the latest team of bright minds aims to continue with the success of the last. Across all departments, work has been non-stop.
“In recent weeks” says Zondag, “the new embedded department has been onboarded. During this period,
our electronics engineers designed new RESS light PCBs. The new RESS lights will now be able to indicate both readyto-drive status and hydrogen leaks.
“In August, the Fuel Cell engineers began redesigning the high-pressure system and continued work on the design for the second BoP. Meanwhile, the powertrain engineer focused on conductivity tests for the Fuel Cell Cooling Cycle and developed a plan to enhance
// WE ARE ALSO DILIGENTLY WORKING ON GETTING THE REAR
the resistance of the cooling cycle.
“The chassis department has also settled into the office and begun working on the first projects. These include designing a new keel duct, air ramps, a slip ratio controller, and several other components. We are also diligently working on getting the rear left gearbox up and running smoothly.”
Currently, hydrogen represents only around 2% of the EU energy mix, and much of the usable hydrogen available is still produced using fossil fuels. But this is changing quickly. Green hydrogen production is set to grow dramatically in the next decade with many private companies investing in plants of different size in different locations. Fuelling networks are emerging, especially in advanced economies such as Germany, France, the UK, and the Netherlands. But testing of hydrogen’s
potential across different use cases is limited. The immediate and obvious use is in heavy haulage and trucking, and this is already underway with several successful studies completed. Currently, Forze is the only student team working with high power automotive fuel cells worldwide. Because the team’s work is so exciting, more brands are keen to be a part of the story.
“September promises to be a significant month for Forze, providing numerous opportunities to engage with both industry leaders and the public,” Zondag closes.
IMPORTANT EVENTS AND EXHIBITIONS TAKING PLACE ACROSS THE ENERGY SECTOR, GIVING BRANDS A PLATFORM TO TELL THEIR STORY.
AUG 17 SEP 24 SEP 11
SEPT 17-18 | ZURICH
Solar & Storage Live presents unique annual opportunities across a number of channels, all designed to deliver business development and leadership opportunities.
This year’s edition will host over 150 exhibitors from across the globe, featuring new ways of thinking and novel partnerships to generate solutions to help power the energy transition.
WIND ENERGY HAMBURG
SEPT 24-27 | HAMBURG
WindEnergy Hamburg is the world’s biggest and most important wind business platform for exchanging news and views, building networks and closing major deals. National and international wind industry associations cooperate with WindEnergy Hamburg and encourage their members to attend.
ESS EXPO
SEPT 11 - 12 | BIRMINGHAM
Sustainable thinking and practices are at the centre of our thinking when planning ESS expo. Our attendees play a massive role in that, and visitor travel is the largest single factor in our carbon footprint, in fact 71% in 2024. Below you will find some ideas to help reduce the environmental impact of the event as we know it’s important to our event community and part of our commitment to you all. Here’s how you can contribute to making a difference while enjoying the enriching experience our event promises.
NOV 20 GLOBAL HYDROGEN CONFERENCE 24 VIRTUAL | NOV 20
