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Shane Gorman was just 18 and three days into Army basic training when his father, Dave, was killed on Piper Alpha. He first understood the scale of what had happened when he saw the newspaper headlines at a train station on his journey home. In this episode of Wind, Waves & Wells, Shane joins me to talk about the loss of his dad, the years that followed and his eventual decision to work offshore himself. We discuss what safety should mean to the people doing the job. From observation card targets and toolbox talks to the fear of speaking up, Shane shares his thoughts on why people can lose faith in safety systems and what leaders can do to rebuild that trust. Shane also tells the story of finding a recording of his father discussing the Alexander Kielland disaster eight years before Piper Alpha, and why he chose to share his experiences of grief, mental health and finding a way forward in his book, Through the Flames. An honest conversation about family, loss and the responsibility we all share to make sure people get home safely. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 00:31 Shane’s story and losing his dad on Piper Alpha 04:07 His father’s approach to safety 06:08 Have we lost faith in our safety tools? 08:31 Toolbox talks and observation card targets 12:36 Choosing to work offshore 16:38 Safety representatives and the voice of the workforce 19:59 Has safety gone too far, or has the focus been lost? 22:40 What makes a good safety adviser? 25:53 Building pauses into the job 27:57 Leadership, speaking up and fear of losing work 29:25 Saying thank you and following up on concerns 32:43 Responsibility, accountability and becoming a leader 35:16 His father’s interview about Alexander Kielland 40:41 Writing Through the Flames 45:06 Revisiting grief and sharing difficult experiences 47:21 What Shane hopes readers take from his story 48:43 His proudest career moment 50:46 Closing thoughts

What's really happening in the offshore job market? Why do recruiters sometimes go quiet when you're looking for work? And is working offshore really the golden ticket that some people on social media make it out to be? In this episode of Wind, Waves & Wells, I'm joined by Alastair Mackay, founder of Ogenus Offshore, a specialist recruitment company working across the global energy industry. With around 15 years of experience in offshore recruitment and drilling, Alastair has experienced the industry's highs and lows, including the downturn that left thousands of experienced workers searching for their next opportunity. Having gone on to establish his own recruitment business, he offers an interesting perspective on the relationship between contractors, recruiters and the companies employing them. We get into some of the questions that contractors have probably wanted to ask recruiters for years. Why do applications sometimes go unanswered? How much money are recruitment agencies actually making from contractors? How persistent should you be when chasing opportunities? And what can people do to improve their chances of securing that next offshore position? We also discuss the growing number of people on social media promoting offshore work as a route to earning huge amounts of money. Whilst the industry can offer fantastic opportunities, there's another side to the story that doesn't always get mentioned, particularly when it comes to getting your foot in the door. Beyond recruitment, we explore the wider offshore employment market, including where drilling activity is increasing, the challenges facing the UK sector and what the future could hold for people working across oil, gas and renewables. Whether you're an experienced offshore contractor, someone trying to enter the industry or simply interested in how the offshore employment market operates, this conversation offers a look at recruitment from both sides of the table. As always, the aim isn't to create a debate or point fingers, but to understand different perspectives and hopefully give people something useful to take away. Connect & Listen Wind, Waves & Wells with Joe Real conversations about the people, challenges and opportunities shaping the energy industry. Website: https://windwavesandwells.com Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube and all major podcast platforms.

Can understanding personality actually make workplaces safer? Mark Wilkinson returns to Wind, Waves & Wells to discuss a major development for E Colours, the launch of a new NEBOSH Verified E Colours Safety Leadership Programme. But this conversation goes much further than a new training course. Mark and Joe explore how different personality styles can influence the way people see risk, communicate under pressure, respond to leadership and interact with the people around them. They discuss why understanding yourself can be just as important as understanding procedures, how poor communication can contribute to incidents, and why there is no single leadership style that works for everyone. Joe also shares his own experience from offshore environments, where recognising different personalities has changed the way he approaches people, conversations and difficult situations. The conversation also turns towards the next generation entering the workforce and the growing influence of AI. AI can write emails, analyse information and help us prepare for conversations, but it cannot replace the ability to stand in front of another person, understand how they are reacting and communicate effectively in the moment. Mark also discusses the journey behind E Colours, the work carried out by Equilibria over more than two decades, his new E Colours Playbook, and what success could look like if personality based safety becomes more widely adopted across industry. Topics include: Personality based safety The new NEBOSH Verified E Colours programme How different personalities perceive risk Safety leadership and communication Psychological safety Understanding strengths and potential limiters Leadership across different generations The impact of AI on human communication E Colours in offshore and high risk industries The new E Colours Playbook Can greater self awareness ultimately help prevent accidents? A fascinating conversation about the human side of safety and why understanding people may become increasingly important in the workplaces of the future.

Three energy podcasters. Three different perspectives. One big conversation about where global energy is heading. In this special crossover episode, I join Stu Turley and Mark LaCour to talk about everything from diesel prices and refinery capacity to energy security, data centres, renewables and the changing global oil market. We get into the problems facing electricity grids, the huge increase in power demand from data centres, the role of natural gas and renewables, and why energy infrastructure is becoming such an important part of the conversation. We also discuss global oil flows, the Strait of Hormuz, the Jones Act, California's energy market, Europe, the North Sea, Rosebank and Jackdaw, and how AI could change the way we find and produce energy. A proper off the cuff energy conversation between three people who spend a lot of time talking about the industry.

In this episode of Wind, Waves & Wells, I sit down with Dan Doyle, oil and gas entrepreneur, author and owner of a hydraulic fracturing company operating across the United States. Dan takes us inside the American fracking industry, explaining how hydraulic fracturing actually works, what it was like building a service company from the ground up and what really happened during the US shale boom. We also get into the boom and bust nature of oil and gas, the challenges of operating across different US states, regulation, energy policy and why some of the biggest opportunities in the industry can appear during downturns. Dan also shares the story behind his book, Roughnecks & Riches: A Startup in the Great American Fracking Boom, including the extraordinary setbacks he faced trying to get his first frac fleet operating. A wide ranging conversation about oil, gas, entrepreneurship, risk, resilience and the people behind the energy industry.

More than 46 years after the Alexander L. Kielland disaster, questions surrounding what happened, why it happened and how the families were treated have never completely disappeared. In Part Two of my conversation with Dr France, we look beyond the physical failure of the rig and discuss what happened afterwards. Dr France explains how his findings have been received in Norway, why he disputes parts of the original investigation, how fatigue cracking could develop over several years and whether there could have been warning signs before the disaster. We also discuss his relationship with campaigner Wayne Hunter, the treatment of the families who lost loved ones, the continuing campaign for justice and compensation, and what Dr France ultimately hopes his research will achieve. Towards the end of the conversation, we broaden things out into the lessons the engineering and offshore industries should take from Kielland and Dr France reflects on a career spanning five decades in welding engineering. 123 people lost their lives on the Alexander Kielland. More than four decades later, the questions surrounding the disaster are still being asked.

On 27 March 1980, the Alexander L. Kielland capsized in the North Sea, killing 123 people in one of the worst disasters in the history of the offshore industry. More than four decades later, Dr France believes the accepted explanation does not tell the full story. A welding engineer with 50 years of experience, Dr France has spent years independently investigating the disaster. In Part One of our conversation, he explains the fundamentals of welding and welding engineering before taking us through his analysis of the Kielland failure. We discuss the condition of the rig when it left the shipyard, hydrogen induced cracking, fatigue, weld procedures, inspection, the evidence he says can still be seen in recovered wreckage, and why he believes the origins of the disaster can be traced back to the rig's construction in 1976. This is a detailed and at times challenging look at one of the North Sea's most significant offshore disasters, from the perspective of a welding engineer who has spent years studying the evidence.

Steve Devereux has spent more than four decades working across the international oil and gas industry, and his career has taken him a long way from where it started. Steve began as an aeronautical engineer before joining Shell in 1979 and learning drilling from the ground up. After training in Holland, he headed to Brunei where he worked his way through the drilling ranks before eventually building a consulting career that has taken him to more than 40 countries. In this episode, I speak with Steve about how drilling careers were built back then, why getting genuine hands on experience mattered so much and whether some of that practical knowledge has been lost from the industry today. We get into his time in the North Sea, well control, major accident risk, the increasing amount of decision making being moved away from the rig and some brilliant stories from a career spent working around the world. Steve also explains his third career in dispute resolution, where he now works as an arbitrator and expert witness on complex industry disputes, and why decades of practical experience can become incredibly valuable when trying to establish what actually went wrong. We also look towards the future. Steve believes AI could represent a genuine step change for drilling, particularly through its ability to analyse huge amounts of data in real time, identify problems earlier and potentially improve well control and safety. But he also gives an important warning: we cannot allow people to blindly trust the technology without understanding the job themselves. Towards the end, Steve shares some excellent advice for anyone starting an offshore career today, including why you should build a financial “war chest”, get as much practical experience as possible and never assume you will only have one career. We finish with one of Steve’s proudest projects, an unusual well intervention offshore Tanzania that required a bit of engineering ingenuity and a very different approach to getting the job done. A fascinating conversation with someone who has watched the drilling industry change enormously over more than 45 years.

Mark LaCour has spent more than 35 years around the oil and gas industry and is now Editor in Chief of the Oil and Gas Global Network, which has grown into a network of more than 30 industry podcasts. What I enjoyed about this conversation is that we covered an enormous amount of ground. Mark takes me back to how he accidentally found his way into oil and gas, what decades of working internationally have taught him about the culture of the industry and why he believes oil and gas has done such a poor job of telling its own story. We get into the extraordinary level of activity taking place in the Permian Basin, the growing importance of natural gas, LNG and what Mark means when he talks about the need for energy abundance. From there, the conversation moves into AI and data centres, renewables, offshore wind, nuclear power and why trying to apply the same energy solution everywhere simply does not work. We also discuss why selling technology into oil and gas is so different from almost every other industry, the importance of trust, the huge amounts of capital involved and why some genuinely useful technology never gets adopted because nobody knows how to sell it properly. Closer to home, I ask Mark about BP moving away from the North Sea, the impact of taxation and politics on investment and what he thinks the future could look like for places such as Aberdeen. We also talk podcasting, sponsorship, getting things wrong publicly and being willing to change your mind when the evidence changes. And towards the end, things go somewhere I definitely was not expecting. Space. Mark explains why he believes the skills, companies and technology developed by the oil and gas industry could eventually play a major role in commercial space travel and even mining the asteroid belt. A wide ranging conversation about energy, technology, business and where this industry could be heading next.

Lewis Senior returns to Wind, Waves & Wells almost a year after his first appearance. At 75, Lewis is still travelling, teaching, coaching and helping organisations understand the role personality plays in leadership, communication and safety. Early in our conversation he sums up exactly why he has absolutely no intention of slowing down: “Purpose never retires.” We talk about how Equilibria has developed over the past year, the growing use of E Colours, upcoming work with Step Change in Safety and why understanding personality can influence something as important as whether someone actually feels comfortable stopping a job. From there we get into leadership and culture offshore. Why can you sometimes walk onto a vessel or installation and almost immediately sense what the culture is like? What separates a genuinely good leader from a poor one? And has the energy industry lost some of the community and camaraderie it once had? We also get into human performance, the future role of HSE professionals and how AI could completely change a job that has traditionally involved huge amounts of paperwork. Then Lewis decides to turn the tables on me. He takes over the podcast and starts asking me the questions. Why did I start Wind, Waves & Wells? Where do I see my career going after nearly 15 years offshore? Why am I moving towards HSE? What role has my family played in everything I have done? And where do I want to be five years from now? It ended up being a very different conversation from the one I originally expected, but probably one of the most personal I have recorded. A wide ranging conversation about leadership, safety, culture, personality, purpose and ultimately the people behind the energy industry. Timestamps: 00:20 Lewis returns to Wind, Waves & Wells 00:47 What has changed at Equilibria over the last year? 02:21 A new leadership programme and the E Colours Playbook 03:39 Why are companies becoming more interested in personality and communication? 04:55 Lewis at 75 and why “purpose never retires” 06:31 Equilibria's role in the changing UK energy industry 07:44 Working with Step Change in Safety 09:16 Upcoming announcements and events 10:44 What would make this year a success for Lewis? 11:58 Keeping an open mind and having difficult conversations 12:26 I reflect on interviewing people I do not necessarily agree with 15:02 How attitudes towards different parts of the energy industry change 16:44 What does good leadership actually look like? 17:34 “If you think you're a leader and nobody is following you…” 18:21 Why an OIM and a head teacher have more in common than you might think 19:47 Leadership is 95 per cent about people 20:44 The difference between camaraderie and genuine community offshore 23:38 How job uncertainty can affect offshore culture 25:13 How personality can influence safety and risk 26:23 Are some personalities less likely to stop the job? 27:28 Why stop work authority does not come naturally to everyone 29:19 What companies misunderstand about human performance 30:50 Has the energy industry lost some of its pride and community? 31:21 Building culture before a rig even starts operating 34:32 My concerns about the growing human performance industry 37:47 Lewis takes over the podcast 38:16 Why I started Wind, Waves & Wells 39:57 Where do I see my career going? 41:40 How AI could completely change the role of HSE professionals 42:21 Why operational experience matters in HSE 43:29 The future of HSE could be far more about people than paperwork 45:05 Where do I want to be in five years? 46:35 Lewis asks why someone should take a chance on me 46:47 “If you don't risk anything, you risk everything” 47:42 Lewis reflects on my future 48:28 What does Lewis still want to achieve? 49:59 Why purpose keeps people going 50:37 Upcoming Step Change events and what's next 51:23 Closing thoughts

The offshore 124 kg weight limit has generated plenty of debate. But Diccen Sargent believes there is a much bigger issue that has received almost no attention: offshore lifeboats. Diccen has spent decades working in technical and operational safety across the oil and gas industry, from FPSO projects and major accident risk to drilling, HAZOPs and offshore safety cases. For around ten years, he has also been involved in research looking at the changing size and weight of the offshore workforce. In this episode, Diccen explains why many lifeboats currently installed offshore were originally designed around much smaller personnel, why seat widths and seatbelt limits matter, and what could happen if those systems are ever required during a real emergency. We also discuss the incoming 124 kg offshore weight limit, how some operators are already modifying their lifeboats, the difference between occupational safety and major accident safety, managed pressure drilling and the wider pressures facing the North Sea. We finish by discussing energy security, the future of the UK energy industry and why Diccen believes the transition needs to balance environmental performance, affordability and security of supply. A fascinating conversation about an area of offshore safety that deserves far more attention.

Steve Beedie returns to Wind, Waves and Wells for one of the most open and unscripted conversations we have recorded. Steve speaks honestly about living with PTSD, his ongoing ADHD assessment, and why he has finally realised that helping everyone else cannot always come before helping himself. We also discuss the mental health programme he delivered offshore with Equinor, why genuine offshore experience matters when trying to connect with crews, and whether short mental health courses are really enough to prepare someone for that responsibility. The conversation then moves into the current state of the North Sea, the reality behind transferable skills, the lack of long term opportunities for offshore workers, and Steve’s decision to allow his offshore certificates to expire as he prepares for a new chapter in Australia and the mining industry. This is a conversation about mental health, identity, career uncertainty, personal reinvention, and accepting that oil and gas does not have to be the end of the story. No script. No polished corporate answers. Just an honest conversation between two people who have spent much of their lives offshore.

After almost twenty years in the energy industry, Finlay Johnston has seen the offshore sector from every angle.   Starting his career in commercial banking before making the jump into oil and gas, Finlay went on to negotiate major drilling contracts, build businesses across the world and play a key role in bringing the Ocean Great White back to work in the UK.   In this episode we discuss what really wins business in today's market, why relationships still matter more than emails, how the offshore drilling market is changing, and why mentoring the next generation is one of the most rewarding parts of his career.   We also talk about leadership, stakeholder management, negotiating multi million dollar contracts, the future of the North Sea, and the lessons Finlay has learned from working across Africa, the Middle East and beyond.   If you work in offshore energy, business development, drilling or leadership, there's plenty to take away from this conversation. Don't forget to subscribe for more conversations with the people shaping the energy industry.

The energy debate has become incredibly tribal. You're either pro oil and gas or pro renewables. But does it really have to be that way? In this episode, I sit down with Tessa Khan, Executive Director of Uplift, for an open discussion on the future of the UK's energy system. The conversation covers offshore jobs, domestic manufacturing, Rosebank, energy security, electricity prices, climate responsibility and whether Britain is trying to transition too quickly. While myself and Tessa don't agree on everything, this episode proves that respectful conversations between differing viewpoints are still possible and perhaps more important than ever. Whether you work in offshore oil and gas, offshore wind or simply care about where the UK's energy future is heading, this is a discussion worth listening to.

Both started their careers as Army chefs before making the move offshore. Between them, they have spent more than two decades feeding crews across production platforms, drilling rigs and accommodation vessels. We spoke about what really goes on behind the scenes in an offshore galley. From feeding more than 550 people offshore, to dealing with food complaints, Christmas dinners away from home and the strange requests they receive on a daily basis, this was a brilliant conversation and one that highlights just how important catering is to morale offshore. Because if there is one thing every offshore worker looks forward to during the day, it is meal times. 00:00 Intro 00:20 Introduction to Kev and Stephen 01:32 How two Army chefs ended up offshore 04:21 What an offshore chef actually does 06:46 Feeding more than 550 people offshore 08:41 Why offshore workers eat so much 11:35 The biggest challenges of offshore catering 13:27 Delayed boats and running out of fresh food 15:43 Drilling rigs versus production platforms 19:42 Why food is so important for morale offshore 23:35 The funniest requests they've received offshore 25:01 When meals go badly wrong 29:55 Reusing leftovers and reducing waste 30:26 Dealing with complaints and negative feedback 36:35 The offshore workers who can never eat enough 38:26 Why offshore food costs more than people think 40:42 The new offshore weight policy 43:57 Healthy eating offshore and changing habits 49:43 The smoked mackerel curry story 52:08 Birthday cakes and special requests 54:06 Favourite meals to cook offshore 55:35 Christmas and New Year offshore 58:02 Their proudest offshore moments If you've worked offshore, I'd love to know: How important is food to morale on board? And what is the strangest meal combination you've ever seen someone put on a plate?