North Sea oil and gas workers have backed strike action following a dispute over pay.
The workers are spread across seven assets linked to the Forties and Beryl fields and have voted to take action.
Unite, the union who represent offshore workers employed by Apache, say their employers’ offer amounts to a real-terms pay cut for some workers, ranging from a pay freeze to increases below inflation. Apache, however, says its final offer includes a 4% pay increase and is fair when the wider benefits package is considered.
The Forties Pipeline System (FPS) is operated by Ineos, carrying crude from dozens of North Sea fields to Scotland. Unite says it handles around 29% of UK oil production and 30% of gas production.
The concern centres particularly on Forties Charlie, which acts as a central gathering hub for the Forties field. Oil from the Forties platforms is exported through the FPS to shore.
Stevie Davies, Unite industrial officer, said: “Unite’s members are being left with no option but to take strike action. Any disruption to Apache’s platforms would have a direct hit on the Forties Pipeline and potentially severely affect the UK’s fuel supplies.”
Apache said: “Based on our current contingency plans, we do not anticipate that industrial action would affect other producers’ ability to continue operating through the Forties Pipeline System. Our plans include maintaining experienced personnel on Forties Charlie to operate the plant and support continued third-party production, even if production from all five Apache-operated Forties platforms were suspended.
“Any resulting reduction in pipeline pressure if Apache production was suspended would be comparable to that experienced during a routine maintenance outage. As a responsible operator, we are planning to maintain safe operations throughout any industrial action, with staffing and activities subject to ongoing assessment.
“We respect the ballot result, but our preference remains to resolve this matter through constructive dialogue.”
If no agreement is reached, the workers could begin industrial action later this month, with the potential impact on Apache’s North Sea operations and the wider Forties system depending on how the dispute develops.
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