OSLO: Houston-based National Oilwell Varco Inc. will cut about 1,500 Norwegian jobs, according to several media reports.
That’s about one-third of the company’s roughly 5,000 Norwegian employees, according to the Wall Street Journal. The cuts include 900 permanent jobs and 600 contractor workers.
NOV, which makes oil and gas drilling equipment, attributed the cuts to the downturn in oil prices and, thus, exploration and production companies’ spending cuts.
NOV, which makes oil and gas drilling equipment, attributed the cuts to the downturn in oil prices and, thus, exploration and production companies’ spending cuts.
The uncertain market situation means that we cannot say at present how extensive the manpower reduction process will be over the longer term,” NOV’s Norwegian arm said in a statement cited by several media reports.
The news comes one day after Norway-based Statoil ASA (NYSE: STO), which also has a significant presence in Houston, announced a similar number of cuts.