Omega Subsea establishes subsidiary in Aberdeen

In April, Alistair McKee was employed in Omega Subsea with the aim of establishing a Subsea subsidiary in the UK. On Monday 1 June, he opened the doors to Omega Subsea UK in the Crichiebank Business Centre in Aberdeen, Scotland.

“The creation of a subsidiary in the UK is a strategic step in the development of Omega Subsea and the realization of our goal to build a greater global presence. The aim is to establish a strategic business unit focusing on new customers in the UK, Europe and Africa and develop a talent pool in Aberdeen, as part of the continued growth of Omega Subsea. Our main focus is to provide experienced, competent professionals within subsea and marine operations in the oil and gas industry. We are also building a diverse portfolio of clients and competence networks across various industries in order to reduce the risks associated with fluctuations in the market,” says CEO of Omega Subsea, Trond Berge.

The new subsidiary will primarily serve the UK market, but will also be responsible for Omega Subsea’s activities in Africa.

A natural choice

Alistair McKee is no stranger to the Subsea industry or to many of the employees of Omega Subsea.

“I've been in business since 1990, when I started working in Subsea Offshore. From 1993 to 1998 I worked in Sonsub; the last two years of which I worked together with Øyvind Lunde from Omega Subsea in Stavanger. It was therefore natural to contact him in February this year when I was looking for a new assignment,” says McKee.

The current downsizing and uncertainty in the oil and gas industry does not scare McKee; he is focused on the possibilities the current situation presents.

“The market is full of potential candidates and we therefore have an opportunity to hire the best. I also believe it is a good time to establish contact with new clients and nurture relationships with existing clients as we look to the period of recovery, which is surely coming,” says McKee.

Total Supplier

Andreas Hveding Aubert (left), Trond Berge and Alistair McKee are taking a strategic step in the development of Omega Subsea and the realization of their goal to build a greater global presence.

The objective of Omega Subsea, since its inception, has been to deliver a total project package that supports the discipline from tender to completion, including both support and logistical services, to the wider international market.

“We offer consulting, engineering and project and contract management in the subsea sector, in addition to providing operational senior personnel for offshore assignments. The services include all project phases from tendering to project completion of both marine and subsea operations,” says Berge.

A local team

Alistair McKee will initially be Omega’s only full-time employee in Omega Subsea UK's office, but he will be accompanied, on a part-time basis, by HR Consultant, Fiona McKenzie. The plan is McKenzie will eventually join McKee on a full-time basis.

"It is imperative for Omega to have a team on the ground here in the UK that understands and has experience in the needs of the local market, and we believe that Aberdeen is the perfect location for our initial activities outside of Norway,” explains McKee.

“Fiona and I will be available locally to clients and consultants, but at the same time we are backed by one of Norway's largest providers of project personnel and solutions in Omega, which means we can concentrate on the job at hand. It also offers our business partners with unique access to, in particular, the Subsea Norwegian market.”

“Our activities in Aberdeen are essentially an entry way to a wider international market, which will offer mutual benefits to Omega Subsea UK and its parent company," says McKee, who is part owner of the new company; 92 percent of shares in Omega Subsea UK are held by Omega Subsea.