Several senior members of staff from the recently closed oil and gas services business Applied Drilling Technology International (ADTI) have joined well management business Exceed.
ADTI, bought by private equity firm Sun European Partners for an undisclosed sum from Transocean last year, was shut at short notice in May with the loss of around 90 jobs.
Now Aberdeen-based Exceed, which mainly works internationally, has formed a new subsidiary with eight ex-ADTI employees to target drilling and project management work in the North Sea and further afield.
It said the agreement extends its service offering to include well abandonment, production technology and petroleum engineering and will allow it to enter new markets.
John Anderson has joined Exceed as its commercial director of wells, Calum MacDonald as well engineering and operations director, Bart van de Laar as wells project manager and Steve Hayhurst as production technology and petroleum engineering manager.
Also taking up roles are Dave Craig as engineering team lead, completions and workover manager John McNab, well test and decommissioning manager John Simpson and subsea manager Ross Mack.
The subsidiary, called Exceed Wells, is looking to attract a number of ADTI clients as well as new customers.
Exceed confirmed that if sales go well it may look to employ more former ADTI workers in the coming months.
Mr Anderson said: “As we grow we will look to use the people we know and trust as much as possible.”
Al Brockie, head of wells management at Exceed, said: “Traditionally, ADTI has had a strong presence in the North Sea whereas the majority of Exceed’s projects have been delivered internationally. This partnership not only bolsters our global credentials and renews our focus on the North Sea, but also allows Exceed to evolve internal systems and processes which will result in significant benefits for clients.
“The move also sends an important message to the industry in a time when thousands of jobs are at risk across all sectors and many talented professionals are being made redundant purely as a result of cost saving measures.
“Companies which are still in a position to continue expansion plans should be making the most of this opportunity. The events following the closure of ADTI have been a prime example of how collaboration within the industry can secure jobs and livelihoods.”
Mr Anderson added: “This is an opportunity for us to continue servicing existing customers and preserve the ADTI bloodline, quality and levels of service. Our team brings strong historic client relationships with a number of North Sea based operators and we are very optimistic that this newly combined service offering and track record will re-open doors both locally and nationally.
“Feedback from clients has suggested that the loss of ADTI is a loss to the industry, and so we are extremely pleased that this merger has happened.”
With the latest additions Exceed now has 30 staff with a further 20 contractors working in projects in the North Sea, Canada, West Africa and the South East Asia.
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