Reuters: Job Losses in UK's North Sea Raise Skills and Safety Concerns

Cost-cutting in Britain's North Sea oil and gas sector could lead to more acute skills shortages in future, industry experts have warned, with some expressing concerns that safety could be compromised.

A plunge in crude prices over the last 12 months has prompted oil majors such as Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L), BP (BP.L), Chevron (CVX.N) and ConocoPhillips (COP.N) to lay off hundreds of workers.

Oil field services groups such as Amec Foster Wheeler (AMFW.L), Wood Group (WG.L) and Petrofac (PFC.L) are also in consultation with employees over job cuts.

"We have seen a lot of panicking," said Alastair Cole, a director at Spencer Ogden, an energy recruitment agency. "We've seen some very quick decisions made to balance the books in the short term, and there's going to be a big gap in the future."

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