Halliburton swings axe in Norway

Oilfield services company Halliburton has decided to swing its jobs axe in Norway, a decision that will affect offshore and onshore positions. 

Offshore.no, a Norwegian language website covering the country’s offshore oil and gas industry, reported on Wednesday that between 250 and 260 employees in Norway would lose their jobs.

This decision will affect both offshore and onshore workers, with 100 of those being offshore workers.

The Norwegian news website also said that the criteria for the layoffs would be seniority, expertise and social reasons.

The oilfield services giant reduced its global headcount by 25 percent since 2014.

The dramatic fall in oil prices already led the oilfield services company to lay off 1,000 workers in December 2014, followed by 6,400 in February 2015, and followed by more reductions in Canada in September 2015.

In addition, the company said in February 2016 it would reduce its global workforce by 5,000 positions.

Offshore Energy Today reached out to Halliburton seeking confirmation of these reports and asking for further details.

In an e-mail to Offshore Energy Today, Halliburton’s spokesperson said that, due to ongoing market conditions, Halliburton was further reducing its global workforce by approximately eight percent or about 5,000 positions, adding that the recent reductions in Norway were included in this global number.

Halliburton’s spokesperson said: “We regret having to make this decision but unfortunately we are faced with the difficult reality that reductions are necessary to work through this challenging market environment.”

However, when it comes to the number of employees in Norway that will be affected, the spokesperson said that details of specific businesses and the number of employees was competitive information and therefore unavailable.

The article has been updated to include a statement by Halliburton

Offshore Energy Today Staff