The sudden growth in job opportunities may also be linked to pressure to discover new oil reserves as the price of oil skyrockets around the world.

Roles in Oil & Gas

The demand for drilling crews is high around the world, since drilling rigs function continuously. Moreover, skilled workers, such as machinists, welders and pipe fitters have plenty of job opportunities in maintenance operations on offshore projects. Offshore drilling crews, welders and geophysicists have an abundance of rewarding job opportunities in the global oil and gas extraction industry.

Offshore drilling projects also often require cooks, sailors, pilots, radio operators and officers as part of the personnel to operate helicopters, barges and crew boats.

Drilling superintendents have rewarding job opportunities to serve in supervisory roles heading drilling crews.

Job opportunities for geophysicists are also growing, as these professionals are expected to be involved with heading exploration operations and organizing critical information. There are job opportunities for geophysical prospectors who are expected to lead crews and investigate exploration, drilling and leasing activities.

Petroleum engineers are responsible for ensuring the success of the actual drilling operations as well as for implementing effective recovery methods. Several global companies employ geologists and geophysicists to prepare, study and analyze geological maps and seismic data for future test drillings.

However, it's important to note that the critical nature of these processes make promotions difficult to achieve. In addition, many companies are hesitant to employ inexperienced workers to work on offshore rigs, making it hard to gain experience. 

Global employment opportunities are expected to soar for qualified professionals and experienced extraction workers in oil and gas. Familiarity with new technologies such as 3-D or 4-D seismic exploration will be an added advantage for employees in the oil and gas extraction industry in the forthcoming years.

Opportunities in Oil & Gas: US

Alaska is one of the leading oil producing states in the US. The recently approved Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Project is expected to generate thousands of jobs in the oil and gas sector. The state of Alaska has approved the license for TransCanada to begin preliminary work for this project, offering $500 million in funding. Alaska Governor Frank Murkowski stated that this project will provide more than 9,300 jobs and will require 54 million man hours for completion. Jobs for pipeliners, heavy equipment operators, engineers and welders will be abundant.

Find out more about the Alaska Pipiline Project

Opportunities in Oil & Gas: Canada

The oil companies in Canada have an ever-growing requirement of workers. This is because these companies work night and day on the Alberta oil sands region. From this region, heavy oil extraction and refinement to usable crude takes place. In fact, the CBS recently reported that the Canadian government requires thousands of additional workers till 2012 to meet targets and complete the project. Be it for heavy equipment operators, geologists, steel fabricators, welders and pipe fitters, the CBS 60 Minutes broadcast reveals that the average earnings are around $120,000 annually.

Opportunities in Oil & Gas: UK

The UK has emerged as a major employer in the upstream oil and gas sector. This industry employs close to 260,000 workers across Scotland, South East of England and North of England. The UK downstream, or petroleum industry, is known to employ more than 150,000 workers directly, while it hires thousands of contract workers. The commercial UK market comprises independent distributors of fuel, power generators, agencies, high street filling petrol stations and the military. This also means that workers are required in refining, manufacturing and retailing.

Jobs in Hydrocarbon

The global hydrocarbon sector offers ample job opportunities, owing to growing investments worldwide. Countries such as Australia, US and Egypt offer lucrative job opportunities in this sector.

The hydrocarbon sector is closely interlinked to oil refining and distribution.

Australia offers significant job opportunities in the hydrocarbon sector. As Australia exports aviation fuels and lubricants worldwide, it is also a major producer of kerosene, diesel and liquid petroleum gas. The country uses refined oil for a variety of industrial and household purposes. The Australian hydrocarbon industry creates a vast number of jobs in the direct and indirect categories. For plant operators, workers, technicians and chemical engineers, the demand is always high. Moreover, the demand for hydrocarbon specialists, team leaders and business developers in the management side of Australia’s hydrocarbon sector is considerably high.

In the US, the Elk Point refinery development will offer a large number of job opportunities. This refinery will be the first green field refinery to be built in the US. The refinery is expected to result in nearly 4,500 jobs in Union County’s hydrocarbon sector the construction phase, which is expected to span four years, and round 1,800 full-time jobs after completion.

Egypt is also known for its flourishing oil and gas markets. The country engages in refining and hydrocarbon processing of crude petroleum oil. Leading companies, such as British Petroleum, Suez Petroleum, Shell and Norsk Hydro operate across the country, creating significant job opportunities. For instance, Shell offers considerable job opportunities for chemical engineers, geophysics engineers, electronic staff, drilling engineers, tubing staff, environmental engineers and refining engineers. British Petroleum (BP) offers a range of employment opportunities graduates, undergraduates and professionals in the Egyptian hydrocarbon sector.