Scotland invests in oil & gas services firm’s R&D department

Economic development agency Scottish Enterprise (SE) has awarded £2.2 million ($2.82M) to Scaled Solutions to develop research and development (R&D) solutions for North Sea clients.

The Scottish Government said in an announcement on Thursday that, in addition to the £2.2 million ($3.72M) awarded by SE, the company would add £2.9 million to the investment.

According to the statement, the R&D project will enable the company to develop new testing services that will address knowledge and technology gaps in corrosion and scaling mechanisms.

Scaled Solutions will also grow its staff at its Scottish base over the next three years by a third, with 17 of the 19 newly-created jobs in the R&D department.

Scotland’s Economy Secretary, Keith Brown, said: “Scotland’s oil and gas supply chain is internationally acclaimed and this investment will further enhance its reputation. It will enable Scaled Solutions to develop an exciting range of services targeted at clients in the North Sea and across the world.

“The company is already providing testing facilities to some of the biggest names in the industry. Having recently visited Abu Dhabi and Kazakhstan to promote oil and gas exports and companies, it’s particularly encouraging to see the firm identify international opportunities and drive forward the kind of change that will allow it to take full advantage of them.

“The investment will also create high-value and highly-skilled positions working directly in research and development.”

Gordon M. Graham, managing director of Scaled Solutions, said: “This is the largest R&D project we’ve undertaken to date and we believe it will transform our current capabilities and services, creating solutions not available anywhere else in the world.”

Adrian Gillespie, managing director of Scottish Enterprise, said: “Our R&D grants are vital in helping companies invest in projects which otherwise simply would not happen in Scotland. That’s why we’re investing over £22 million in R&D support this year, which is an increase on last year.”

Scaled Solutions Ltd is an independent laboratory testing facility, established in 1999 to service the o&g production industry. The company specializes in flow assurance, production chemistry, and formation damage issues with particular emphasis on near wellbore treatments, scale and corrosion control, in addition to reservoir simulation and modelling studies.