It's been slow. The rest of my six week tour in Suriname was uneventful. There were a few parades, some good meals, and I made some new friends, but there was very little to write about. The big chatter permeating everyone's thoughts has been the growing slump in the industry. Job uncertainty leads to keeping one's head down and just getting on with it.
The surplus of oil reserves had driven the price down to below $45 US a barrel in March, and while it has recovered to a little over $60 US a barrel, the reduced profit margins have the oil companies cancelling exploration projects the world over. There are quite a few parked rigs at present, and new projects are being put on the back burner in hopes of the days of yore where oil was well over $100 and profits prodigious. Exploration is our bread and butter and we've been feeling the crunch. As projects cancel, bases close, we have helicopters not flying, and pilots and engineers are no longer required, so the layoffs have been hitting us hard. Hence the quiet days.
So I finished up my contract in Suriname wondering what tomorrow would bring. There are some jobs out there, considering my background and the expertise I'm bringing to the table, but it's not an environment to get cocky. I was home for a few weeks, then off to Northern Italy for my yearly recurrent training at Agusta. After the training and check rides were signed off, I hopped on the train and headed to Venice and Verona, walking the old world streets, taking in the sights, and throughly enjoying everything Italy has to offer. Trying my best to forget about the oil industry for a few days.
I'm back home again, still with a job at present, wondering what's next....
