Energy Sector Transformations for a Low Oil-price world

After a 5 year period of unprecedented stability, global oil prices appear to have re-entered their normal commodity price cycle with a fall from over $100 to less than $60 in the last 15 months, with most predicting that prices will stay lower for longer than in the last price downturn in 2008. There have been at least 5 similar price fall events in the last 30 years, but will the response of the energy sector and host governments be different this time?

Energy sector investment plans are being scaled back with most companies significantly reducing, their capital investment programmes in new projects by an average reduction of approximately 30%. At the same time Operators are seeking to drive deflation into both capital and cash costs to secure competitive returns to investors and to shore up weakened balance sheets. Key questions facing the energy sector are:

1) What are the short and longer term impacts of this for Governments, Operators, and the Supply Chain?
2) Will there be a ‘mind-set’ shift to a drive for standardization on industry-led development project solutions, and will the sector learn how to collaborate more efficiently and effectively together (e.g. on technology, resource access, engineering process and solutions) to deliver more consistent competitive investment returns performance to shareholders and stakeholders?
3) Will the energy sector use the current price environment to re-invent itself as more efficient and less wasteful against a backdrop of still needing to be able to manage big risks in exchange for preferential returns?
4) Is today’s low price environment the catalyst the energy sector needs to address reform and evolution of energy sector practices and behaviours that could deliver more consistent and competitive long run performance?

Members from all sectors are encouraged to attend this seminar which will be addressing the topic of organisational and sectoral transformation within an environment of budget cuts.

Event timings 9.00 – 16.30. Detailed programme to follow.