A DRIVE to encourage more ex-military personnel into the east’s energy industry was given a boost last week with an event aimed at showing them how to get into the sector.

Around 80 serving and ex-military took part in the Military Energy Industry Awareness event which was organised as part of the Skills for Energy programme. The military are highly regarded in the industry because of their high skills levels and mental attitude.

Ex-military speakers, currently working in the energy industry spoke about their experiences leaving the services and their advice on how to make the transition as smooth as possible.

The event, in Norwich, was hosted by the East of England Energy Group (EEEGR), and sponsored by the Norfolk Community Covenant. One of the main aims of the Skills for Energy partnership is to help ex-services personnel into the energy industry.

EEEGR executive director Celia Anderson, who leads the Skills for Energy programme, said: “We welcome the ex-military in to the industry but we don’t make it easy for them.

“It is a growing industry with exciting opportunities for the right people. This event was designed to help them make career decisions and help them on the route. The feedback was excellent and we will be running more this year.”

Amongst the speakers were Ian Moulton, operations improvement manager from oil and gas firm Perenco, who spoke about the similarities between some equipment used in the energy industry and the armed forces. Mark Goodacre, operations technician at Shell, who previously spent 11 years in the RAF, said: “I think everyone who attended learnt a great deal from the event, and the feedback I received was great. I have been in their position before so I know how they feel.”