I travelled to Houston just days after the Macondo blowout; not to join the media horde that was out to pillory BP and its chief executive of that time, Tony Hayward, but to attend OTC.
Needless to say, the 2010 show became dominated by the disaster as vitriol spilled forth via a host of news media bent on crucifying “Briddish Petroleum”.
The industry was in shock ... absolutely caught on the back foot; so were government agencies in charge of the US Gulf, notably the MMS (Minerals Management Service), which was rapidly dismantled and replaced by a new regulatory and safety system that included the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
GoM operators came under massive pressure to get their act together and to develop adequate countermeasures.
In July 2010, Shell, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil committed to providing a deepwater containment response capability for the US Gulf.
The boss of UK independent oil producer Premier Oil said he does not see a viable long-term future for the North Sea - unless collaboration goes to a whole new level.
One of the more unusual attractions at this year's Offshore Europe is a vintage Ministry of Technology mobile cinema that Parker Hannifin has managed to procure for the event.
Engineers who embarked on their career only a few years ago have been inspiring the next generation of industry leaders at this year's Offshore Europe, in the first programme of its kind at the event.
School children from academies including St Machar in Aberdeen and the secondary school in Montrose were invited along to speak and hear from oil and gas professionals about their careers in the sector.
Energy Voice spoke to two pupils, 17-year-old Alexander Smith and 16-year-old Courtney Thomson, who are both looking to pave their way into the industry.
The Society of Underwater Technology (SUT) has pledged further educational funding of up to £50,000 over the next year in a bid to sustain a high level of skills across the industry.
Around 276 beneficiaries have benefited already from the Educational Support Fund (ESF) with awards totalling £750,000.
The industry's built-in desire to deliver over-engineered solutions has to end if the North Sea is to enjoy a long and profitable future, a leading industry figure has claimed.
The chief executive of the International association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) said the drilling industry must become a "high reliability sector".
Steve Colville said drilling in a number of regions was currently "uneconomic" and needed some "substantial readjustments" in its cost base as a result.
Speaking at Offshore Europe at the Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre (AECC) Colville said other industries including aviation and nuclear could provide many learnings for the sector.
A new form of well control training is set to be rolled out by Seadrill after being successfully piloted.
The enhanced training was developed by Maersk Training under the guidance of the International Well Control Forum (IWCF).
Energy Voice spoke to Dave Conroy, chief technical officer with IWCF about the pilot scheme.
The UK managing director of Aker Solution said the next generation should not be afraid to "jump in with both feet" and get as much experience as possible.
Professor Brian Cox told a packed audience at Offshore Europe's opening plenary session the key to inspiring the next generation was as much about "information as well as inspiration".
The physicist spoke to an audience with standing room only about the challenges all industries face in encouraging young people to enter them.
The Professor of particle physics said although there was less of a challenge than previously, future industry leaders would need to see a path to success in order to inspire them into the sector.
It’s 42 years since the first Offshore Europe conference was held in Aberdeen and 30 years since it first occupied its current home at Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre.
New technologies to scan deeper waters for undiscovered oil are poised to bring all the excitement of space exploration to the global offshore energy industry.
The Energy Industries Council (EIC), the trade association for UK companies that supply goods and services to the energy industries, will be the largest single exhibitor at Offshore Europe in Aberdeen next month.
Low oil and gas prices steered Aberdeen hotels to double-digit percentage falls in both occupancy and revenue for the second month on the trot, a new report says.
And there is uncertainty as to whether hotel prices will be ratcheted up for next month’s Offshore Europe conference, a common practice in the Granite City.
Aberdeen hotel rooms generated £52.45 a night on average in May, down an alarming 30% year-on-year, according to accountancy network BDO’s survey of three and four star establishments.
Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness all experienced strong increases in revenue, though the Scottish capital was the only location to enjoy a rise in occupancy.
A £15million investment at Montrose harbour will help it compete for lucrative offshore oil and gas decommissioning work in years to come, according to the port's operator.
£250 a night to stay in a kid’s tree house! Worse still is being stranded in the Aberdeen Exhibition & Conference Centre (AECC) car park. The oil price isn’t what it was, but some things remain the same.
I recently slept in a hotel room that will cost £3,364.09 for Offshore Europe.
I have heard a speaker in the hotel’s function room equivocally refer to it as “beauty comes in many forms”. At least the hotel fits in with the Aberdeen industrial estate around it.
My own experience wasn’t bad, but Northsound over breakfast was more couthy than continental and I wasn’t tempted to pack the hotel’s toiletries. Hopefully its September visitors will get more VIP treatment; good news that the Marcliffe Hotel is still with us to set the standard.
Aberdeen company Plexus Holdings will unveil its new subsea wellhead, developed in partnership with Python consortium partners, on September 8 during the city's Offshore Europe oil and gas show.
Oil and gas companies are snapping up exhibition stands at this year’s Offshore Europe (OE) conference in Aberdeen as quickly as ever, despite the current downturn in the energy sector.
OE’s spiritual sister on this side of the Atlantic – ONS Norway – was cancelled and just last week BP said it would not exhibit at the biennial OE conference this September, with the low oil price citied as a factor in both decisions.
Concerns that OE could be a quiet affair this year appear to be unfounded, however.
