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Companies that rely on oil and gas activity off the coast of Louisiana could have fossil fuels track the end of the coal industry, and would run out of work without enough renewable fuel jobs to replace them. I’m afraid there is a possibility. President Joe Biden wants to replace fossil fuel production and consumption with policies that promote renewables such as wind and solar, which can be a problem if tackled too early. “It will ruin our community,” Houma-based Danos CEO Paul Danos said in a recent industry panel discussion. “In the long run, we know that an energy transition will occur … but it must be done at a reasonable pace. We are not going to switch. It is that way. It won’t happen, “he said. .. The Houma-based oilfield services business has a three-year contract to regularly supply 144 workers to the helicopter’s oil platform across the Royal Dutch Shell offshore fleet ferry crew.

eminetra.com

In a recent industry session, the Louisiana delegation was missing in action. The Gulf needs some sort of transition but did the industry fail them? The recent cancellation of new Federal offshore leases may hurt but there is a backlog of prior issued leases that have not been used.

Faced with no new offshore auctions for at least a year, companies have a stockpile of leases from previous auctions that haven’t been drilled yet and can be used, but which one is for future activity in the Gulf. Some people wonder how it affects them. “It would be a tragic mistake for the federal government to rush to limit offshore development,” said Chet Chiasson, Secretary-General of Port Forchon. Port Forcheon is a hub for more than 90% of deep-sea oil production activities in the Gulf of Mexico, and the Laforche Parish site between Houma and New Orleans has more than 250 tenant companies. Every day, hundreds of large supply vessels move along the harbor waterways. It is also the land hub of the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, which has transitioned from import terminals to exports as production in the United States has increased in recent years. Mr. Chiason joined the panel, arguing that industrial development was not necessarily at odds with the environment, and that local companies wanted a job, whether it was the manufacture of offshore wind turbines or oil rigs. “I know the Bayou Laforche company in our area. If you need to make something and go abroad, I hope you can do it with any kind of energy service,” he said. Said. “We have the technology and expertise. We want to be part of it.”

South Louisiana will be come a hub for solar panel farms but once the site is set up there is little need for employees. This is a main argument form the oil industry.

South Louisiana will become a larger hub for solar farms in the coming years as utilities are buying more renewable energy, but each solar project requires only a handful of jobs after construction Do not. “There is no correlation between the number of jobs found in the oil and gas sector, especially the offshore oil and gas sector, and the number of jobs found in renewable energy. That’s true on the construction side, but no, on regular employment. Is a big concern. “ He also said that the production of renewable energy products such as wind turbines and solar panels still requires the petrochemical industry of components going into development. Offshore wind is another possibility on the Louisiana coast, which could be near the windy Texas border. “It’s about a realistic transition,” he said.

One source of employment is in capping old wells.

Separately, Biden has set up 10 facilities to demonstrate modifications and installations to recover carbon from processes in the petrochemical and refining industries, to cap isolated oil and gas wells across the country. Proposed to work thousands of people. There are over 4,500 in Louisiana. The CEO of Danos said his workers asked if there was a renewable energy job in the Louisiana community, and so far the answer is no. Founded in the 1940s as a tugboat business, Danos has grown into offshore services, construction, manufacturing and logistics for many years. It spans nine offices and has more than 2,300 employees worldwide. The company has recently advanced into maintenance of renewable projects and hired a crew to engage in electrical repairs for solar farms in Arizona, but that’s not much of the company’s business. Onshore wells, on the other hand, require about the same number of people to run an offshore oil platform, even though more technology is being utilized in the field and fewer workers are needed. Shell’s Wood auger oil platform, which went into production in 1994, still requires 192 workers to operate, as these technology upgrades do not replace work.

It is not just the specific oil industry that is affected but also the supporting companies, such as grocery stores.

The family-owned Galliano Food Store recognizes that the boom and cycle of the oil and gas sector is affecting its workforce. Grocery stores sell groceries to many boats near the Gulf, serving oil and gas service companies and workers. In recent years, the company has grown to more than 60 employees and has contracted to only 30 employees. So far this year we have 50 employees. “It depends on what’s happening in the economy,” said Jedon Bregi, sales director of the Galiano Food Store, which his grandfather founded decades ago. Bregi, who participated in a panel discussion on the Gulf ban and the future of the fossil fuel industry, was concerned about whether there would be sufficient food demand if supply vessels stopped going offshore.

Further discussion mirrors other postings noting that oil revenues and production have fallen. Fewer people are employed by the industry. With these factors, environmentalists question the effect of the cancellation of leases. If most are not producing oil, why do we need more? It appears that the employment needs will be come the driving factor.

No Federal Off Shore Leases – Not Business as Normal
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