First Minister Welcomes Intertek Facility as ‘A True Centre of Excellence in North Sea Oil and Gas’

The First Minister of Scotland today hailed the significance of Intertek’s new research and development, testing and training facility in Aberdeen which will service the future needs of the global oil and gas industry and bolster North Sea activity.

The Rt Hon Alex Salmond officially opened the £15 million Aberdeen headquarters of Intertek’s energy services operation during a visit to the facility this morning.

The global provider of quality and safety services has incorporated a cluster of vital services to the oil and gas industry under one roof.

Intertek has a 40-year heritage of providing services to the oil and gas industry from Aberdeen and has evolved from a few people in a laboratory in the town of Ellon to 160 employees at the new energy services hub.

The company has signed a 20 year lease on the 41,000 square feet North Point building on the Energy Park in Bridge of Don and invested £4.5 million in the state-of-the art laboratories.

The First Minister paid tribute to the success of Intertek in Aberdeen competing on an international stage. He said: "This new facility is designed to house Intertek’s existing energy operations around Aberdeen under one roof - creating a true centre of excellence in North Sea oil and gas at the heart of a technology park that is fast becoming a hub of innovation.

"More than 160 people will be based in this building, which could increase to up to 220 over the next three years to meet demand. This shows just what a critical role the whole breadth of the energy sector plays in our economy here in Aberdeen and across the region.

“Around £4.5 million has been invested in these state of the art laboratories, which beat out stiff competition internationally from other parts of the world where energy expertise is concentrated. I congratulate the Intertek team and wish them all the best in their new home.”

Raymond Pirie, vice president of Intertek’s global upstream business said: “Our investment in the new facility strengthens Intertek’s integrated offering, underlining our confidence in the oil and gas market and our desire to provide the highest quality service at home and internationally. The energy services headquarters is a centre of excellence to support the exploration and production market and push the boundaries in science and technology.

“Intertek is experiencing continuing growth in demand for our integrated energy services. We see continued need for our services to safeguard asset integrity and secure increased production in the buoyant North Sea market. We are actively recruiting engineers, chemists and technical experts to help meet this demand and are proud to be a growing employer in the North East.”

The new facility brings together a wide scope of expertise including: production and integrity assurance; hydrocarbon accounting; chemometric modelling; calibration and metering, measurement allocation, consulting and training, dimensional control and renewable energy.

Issued on behalf of Intertek by The BIG Partnership.

About Intertek
Intertek is a leading provider of quality and safety solutions serving a wide range of industries around the world. From auditing and inspection, to testing, quality assurance and certification, Intertek people are dedicated to adding value to customers’ products and processes, supporting their success in the global marketplace. With a network of more than 1,000 laboratories and offices and over 33,000 people in more than 100 countries, Intertek helps its clients to meet end users’ expectations across increasingly diverse quality, health, environmental, safety and social accountability aspects in virtually any market around the world. Visit www.intertek.com.