Underwater lobby flood parliament

The underwater industry will meet with MPs and the Energy Secretary tomorrow in a bid to secure more support. The sector which supports more than 50,000 jobs and generates £6 […]

The underwater industry will meet with MPs and the Energy Secretary tomorrow in a bid to secure more support. The sector which supports more than 50,000 jobs and generates £6 billion a year, says it can lead economic recovery if its given more government backing.

The 60 strong delegation will tell Chris Huhne that the sector is already a world leader with more than a third of global underwater market share but could do much more. It’s diversified from its original roots in North Sea Oil exploration to being a complete solution for underwater operations in oil, gas and renewable energy. In fact many nations turn to British expertise when it comes to oceanic exploration and recovery.

Neil Gordon, chief executive of Subsea UK said: “This industry has seen 40% growth between 2007 and 2010 despite the downturn. If the forecast of around 8% year on year growth is achieved, the sector will reach over £7.5 billion in revenues with the potential to create an additional 10,000 jobs in the next two years. This is now an industry sector that cannot be ignored.

“To capitalise on the increasing global demand, now is the time to robustly promote the sector at home and abroad. If the UK is to continue to dominate globally, we need Government to acknowledge the importance of the sector and support us in our drive to develop the new technologies the industry need.”

Approximately one third of the total revenues generated by the sector is centred on manufacturing and an impressive £3.3 billion (56%) is directly attributed to export sales.

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