The weather was great, the people came out, and another Saskatchewan Oil and Gas Show has wrapped up for the year.
The event, also known as the Weyburn Oil Show, was held June 7-8 at the Weyburn exhibition grounds. Booths, both inside and out, were sold out.
Attendance numbers were down by roughly 1,000 people, however, according to oil show chair Del Mondor. The total attendance was 3,951, of which one-thirds were exhibitors and two-thirds were attendees.
The decline in attendance is likely due to the decline in employment in the oilpatch. Over the past year, most oilfield services businesses sister publication Pipeline News has spoken to have reported their employment levels have declined by about half compared to 2014 levels, although in the past six months, many have started to hire again.
That was a common discussion thread with many in attendances, as many oilfield business owners expressed concern over a looming labour shortage.
During set up day on June 6, the oil show golf tournament had 246 golfers – exhibitors and sponsors - take part during a blustery day on the fairway.
The wind died down and the sun came out for the actual show, however. The show featured addresses on June 7 by Minister of Energy and Resources Dustin Duncan, who happens to be MLA for Weyburn-Big Muddy, as well as Minister of Environment Scott Moe. Radio talk show host John Gormley also had strong attendance when he spoke on June 8.
Organizers had hoped that Premier Brad Wall would have been able to attend, but a late-running cabinet meeting in Regina on June 7 precluded that. The two ministers present took part by way of conference call when they weren’t at the show.
June 7 also saw several people inducted into the Saskatchewan Oil and Gas Hall of Fame. Rick McHardy, president and CEO of Spartan Energy Corp., was named Saskatchewan Oilman of the Year. Hall of Fame inductees included Grant Fagerheim, president and CEO of Whitecap Resources Inc.,; Bud Bell (posthumous), former president of Schlumberger of Canada Ltd.; and Roger Soucy, founder of the Petroleum Services Association of Canada.
Randall Smith, president of Spectrum Resource Group, Inc., received the Southeast Saskatchewan Oilman of the Year award.
A new category is the Southeast Saskatchewan Legends Awards. Three people were honored with the Legends award this year: Ronald J Wanner, Viking Oilfield Surplus Ltd.; Ken Spearing, Spearing Service, and Melvyn Grimes (posthumous), Grimes Sales and Service Ltd.
Some new items made appearances, including two versions of hybrid light towers. One used a generator and solar panels to charge its batteries, while another used a wind turbine and solar panels. LED lighting seemed to be a common thread throughout.
In a show where exhibitors try their best to show their wares to the decision makers, those key people could indeed be found. That included several members of the board for Spartan Energy, as well as numerous senior production staff for several oil companies. Mondor noted the attendance numbers were down, but not the number of decision makers. “They were out and making progress,” he said via text after the show.
In one instance while doing an interview with a rental outfit who was attending the show for the first time, their oil company client showed up and told them how happy they were with the rental companies product. That was precisely the type of interaction that brings both exhibitors and attendees to the show.
