A world class and leader in the offshore deep-water drilling, industry giant Seadrill has selected Liverpool as the hub of its global operations services.

Described as a “major coup” for the city and a testament to its heritage as a centre of maritime excellence, Seadrill will join the likes of Unilever, Bibby, Jaguar Land Rover and Maersk; companies that have all recognised the benefits of doing business in Liverpool.

Seadrill’s move is a relocation from Dubai to the fifth floor of Merseytravel’s Mann Island, a further boon for the city’s publicly owned businesses. The move is expected to create up to 90 highly skilled jobs, including management positions in human resources and IT, and Sseadrill have said that recruitment will begin locally.

In addition to those key roles, a further series of administrative jobs will be created to support the business in its day-to-day operations.

CEO and president of Seadrill Per Wulff suggested that IT and related services are absolutely vital to the running of the business and he says he is confident they can find the skills they need in Liverpool. He said:

“Owing to the global nature of business, it was important that we positioned our service centre in a location within the GMT timezone.”

The company’s operations span five continents, so a dedicated team working round the clock is a standard requirement.

Wulff added:

“Liverpool and the North West of England has excellent national and international transport links and a large talent pool to draw from.

“Add to these factors the city’s rich maritime heritage, which has made it famous around the world, Liverpool adds up as the perfect location for us. We are delighted to be here.”

Speaking at a press conference yesterday at the Merseyside Maritime Museum, Mayor Joe Anderson said:

“I would personally like to welcome Seadrill to Liverpool. From a long list of different criteria, Seadrill has chosen Liverpool and has done so on the city’s merits.

“It is exactly this type of inward investment and high value employment opportunities that we are working very hard to bring to the city. This is a major coup and further evidence that Liverpool remains the natural choice for businesses in maritime industries.”

Robert Hough, chair of the Liverpool City Region LEP said:

“Liverpool delivers a vibrant, world class maritime location for maritime business. We look forward to forging a long and successful partnership with Seadrill as they continue to grow.”

Indeed, Seadrill’s growth in the region seems inevitable considering that only six years ago, the company had only 800 employees. Now Seadrill totals nearly 1o,000 and are still expanding operations at a rapid pace with projects involving British Gas, ExxonMobil, BP, Total, Chevron, Statoil, Petrobras, and Repsol.

Words: Peter Cribley