The typically methodical nature of oil and gas facility development could not fully insulate the sector’s construction activity from the economic roller coaster of the past 12 months, which saw commodity prices for crude oil skyrocket to $140 a barrel, than plummet just as quickly to the low $30s as motorists and industries around the world slashed consumption.
“The market downturn and financial crisis curbed everything,” says Peter Stalenhoef, president and COO of PCL Constructors Inc.’s heavy industrial business.