Aquaterra Energy showcased its business to the next generation of talented employees at the Choose Your Future Careers Convention last week at the Norfolk Showground.

The Choose your Future events bring together companies within the Energy sector to display the breadth of careers on offer and the various entry routes available to young people.

For companies like Aquaterra Energy, the knowledge that demand for graduate engineers in the UK far exceeds the current supply, is a major concern.  The company acknowledges that there is a skills shortage in East Anglia in relation to high calibre mechanical engineers and other disciplines. Attracting those with the experience required is challenging.

Steve Way, HR Manager at Aquaterra Energy, commented: “Aquaterra Energy works closely with leading education providers, including both the University of Cambridge and the University of East Anglia locally, to support knowledge transfer programmes and encourage engineers to consider careers within the oil and gas industry.  The company already has in place an impressive placement scheme and offers summer placements and one year in industry placements for Mechanical Engineering undergraduates.

“However, we feel that promoting careers in the oil and gas industry needs to be started at a grassroots level.  Schools need to place more emphasis on vital subjects like Physical Sciences in addition to Mathematics and IT as well as developing students’ problem solving skills.  We have created partnerships with some local schools that have a strong Physics led approach, for example the Norwich School in the EES Scheme.

Way added: “Aquaterra Energy is committed to building the skills pipeline and we are currently supporting three engineering apprentices.  There are many things that businesses operating in our industry can do to help attract new talent into the industry including: offering work experience; developing close working relationships with university departments; considering non-engineers for commercial roles and maths graduates for analytical roles; and delivering talks and presentations to secondary school staff and students.”