More than 2,000 jobs at risk as oil and gas company enters administrat

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More than 2,000 Scotland-based jobs are at risk as oil and energy services group Petrofac has applied for administration.

The group’s operations will continue to trade, and options for restructuring of the company and a possible merger or acquisition are being actively explored with its key creditors, the company said on Monday.

People close to the company say they are hopeful a buyer can be found swiftly for its North Sea operations, with one suggesting that it could even happen in the coming days.

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Administrators will work alongside company management to “preserve value, operational capability and ongoing delivery”, its announcement read.

News of a possible insolvency announcement was first reported by Sky News.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband and other ministers have been briefed on the situation.

Not a great start to the week for Ed Miliband, though relief could come

It’s not the start to the week that Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, would have been hoping for: more than 2,000 private sector jobs in Scotland at risk from the collapse of Petrofac, the London-listed oilfield services group.

Its slide into insolvency was triggered by last week’s cancellation of a major contract by its biggest customer, but the failure of a company once valued at more than £6bn has been a long time coming.

Administrators at Teneo will now attempt to salvage what they can from Petrofac’s wreckage.

For thousands of employees, the future is now uncertain, although people close to the company say they are hopeful that a buyer can be found swiftly for its North Sea operations, with one suggesting that it could even happen in the coming days.

That would be a relief to Mr Miliband, whose energy policy has come under growing scrutiny in recent months amid dire warnings about the future of Britain’s offshore oil industry.

An…

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