You wear a hard hat and carry a soft spot for the crew. As the rig manager, you’re responsible for the safety and leadership of your crew, as well as the paperwork and the performance of the drilling rig. It makes you a hands-on manager.
Rig managers are responsible for every aspect of rig operations including set up, take down and rig moves, as well as managing personnel and the financial, technical and performance aspects of a drilling rig. The rig manager is typically the point of contact for the operator and provides input during rig marketing and contracting activities.
Rig managers are responsible for daily paperwork pertaining to rig production and costs. The rig manager also ensures that health and safety guidelines are communicated and followed, and that rig operations comply with environmental and governmental regulations. They interact with all drilling rig personnel in addition to well services providers and management. Members of the drilling crew look to their rig manager for leadership, safety training, dispute resolution and support to solve personnel and operational issues.
A service rig is a versatile piece of equipment used from the beginning to the end of an oil or natural gas well’s life. When a new oil or gas well is drilled, a service rig is used to complete the well by laying down pipe through a process called well completion. Maintenance or stimulation work, known as workovers, are required throughout the life of a well to ensure the oil or gas flows efficiently and effectively. On average a service rig will perform services on the same well seven or eight times before it’s ready to be decommissioned. When all the recoverable oil or natural gas has been pumped, the well needs to be properly disposed of, this is a process called abandonment or well site decommissioning.
I'm interested in a career in
- Sub-sector Oil and gas services, Offshore
- Environment Primarily indoor/office work
- Average Salary $75,000 to $108,000
- Education High school diploma
- Career Demand Growing
In this occupation activities may include:
- Ensuring that the permit to work system and other health, safety and environmental (HSE) management tools are used correctly
- Conducting pre-tour meetings with rig crews
- Coordinating rig moves with the client and transportation personnel
- Managing the set up and take down of rigs
- Coordinating rig crews
- Resolving operational and personnel issues with rig crews and contractors
Education
- A high school diploma is required, along with extensive experience working in a rig environment. Additional education, such as college or industry-approved training courses or a post-secondary diploma in petroleum engineering technology may be preferred by some employers.
Certifications
- Standard and emergency first aid
- Construction Safety Training System (CSTS)
- Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS)
- H2S Alive®
- Transportation of dangerous goods (TDG)
- Confined space entry
- Fall protection and rig rescue
- Aerial Lift Training
- Traffic Control
- Respirator fit training
- High angle rescue, loader evaluator
- Second line well control (drilling rig managers) or well service well control (service rig managers)
- Safety management and regulatory awareness for well site supervision
- Electronic General Safety Orientation (eGSO)
- Detection and control of flammable substance
Licensing
- Although Rig Technician journeyman certification is not a legal requirement for this occupation, rig managers are encouraged to apply for a journeyman certificate
- Valid class 5 driving licence
Nature of work and environment conditions specific to oil and natural gas include:
- Travel likely required
- Shiftwork/variable work hours
- Primarily indoor/office work
- Physical work
- Safety-sensitive environment
- Work away from home/in camps
- Low risk environment
You’re a strong communicator, highly organized, detail oriented and can perform well under pressure. You gain the respect of your crew when you demonstrate your hands-on technical skills, and efficient problem solving capabilities.
- Mechanical
- Judgment and decision making
- Operation and control
- Planning and organizing
- Public safety and security
- Troubleshooting
- Administration and management
- Managing conflict
- Attention to detail
- Law and government
- Transportation
- Sub-sector Carbon capture, utilization and storage, Well site decommissioning
- Environment Primarily indoor/office work
- Average Salary Equal to oil and gas
- Education High school diploma
- Career Demand Growing
- Skills Upgrading None
-
Direct
Good news! The skills gained as a rig manager in oil and natural gas are directly transferable to the CCUS and well site decommissioning sub-sectors of cleantech.
In this occupation activities may include:
- Ensuring that the permit to work system and other health, safety and environmental (HSE) management tools are used correctly
- Conducting pre-tour meetings with rig crews
- Coordinating rig moves with the client and transportation personnel
- Managing the set up and take down of rigs
- Coordinating rig crews
- Resolving operational and personnel issues with rig crews and contractors
In addition to the requirements below, specific requirements in cleantech may include:
- Knowledge of environmental laws and regulations in operating areas. (well site decommissioning | CCUS)
Education
- A high school diploma is required, along with extensive experience working in a rig environment. Additional education, such as college or industry-approved training courses or a post-secondary diploma in petroleum engineering technology may be preferred by some employers.
Certifications
- Standard and emergency first aid
- Construction Safety Training System (CSTS)
- Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS)
- H2S Alive®
- Transportation of dangerous goods (TDG)
- Confined space entry
- Fall protection and rig rescue
- Aerial Lift Training
- Traffic Control
- Respirator fit training
- High angle rescue, loader evaluator
- Second line well control (drilling rig managers) or well service well control (service rig managers)
- Safety management and regulatory awareness for well site supervision
- Electronic General Safety Orientation (eGSO)
- Detection and control of flammable substance
Licensing
- Although Rig Technician journeyman certification is not a legal requirement for this occupation, rig managers are encouraged to apply for a journeyman certificate
- Valid class 5 driving licence
Nature of work and environment conditions specific to cleantech include:
- Shiftwork/variable work hours (CCUS | well site decommissioning)
- Travel required (CCUS | well site decommissioning)
- Work away from home/in camps (CCUS | well site decommissioning)
- Primarily outdoor work (CCUS | well site decommissioning)
- Physical work (CCUS | well site decommissioning)
- Temporary/project-to-project work (CCUS | well site decommissioning)
- Freelance/contract opportunities (CCUS | well site decommissioning)
- Lower-risk tolerant culture (CCUS | well site decommissioning)
- Safety-sensitive environment (CCUS | well site decommissioning)
- Transition to a similar level (CCUS | well site decommissioning)
Nature of work and environment conditions specific to oil and natural gas include:
- Travel likely required
- Shiftwork/variable work hours
- Primarily indoor/office work
- Physical work
- Safety-sensitive environment
- Work away from home/in camps
- Low risk environment
You’re a strong communicator, highly organized, detail oriented and can perform well under pressure. You gain the respect of your crew when you demonstrate your hands-on technical skills, and efficient problem solving capabilities.
- Mechanical
- Judgment and decision making
- Operation and control
- Planning and organizing
- Public safety and security
- Troubleshooting
- Administration and management
- Managing conflict
- Attention to detail
- Law and government
- Transportation
- Sub-sector Geothermal
- Environment Primarily indoor/office work
- Average Salary Equal to oil and gas
- Education High school diploma
- Career Demand Growing
- Skills Upgrading Minor
-
Refocus
A rig manager considering a career change from oil and natural gas to the geothermal sub-sector of renewables may need to complete some minor upskilling to make a successful transition. Workers may need to familiarize themselves with more dynamic reservoirs than typically encountered in oil and natural gas production, with deeper reservoirs and, variable pressure, flow rates and temperatures. While geothermal drilling can be more complex, the process is nearly identical. It requires a larger and longer vertical wellbore (resulting in approximately four times longer drilling times) and some equipment adaptations and additional data acquisition and techniques may be required. Drilling mud and fluids are not required for geothermal.
In this occupation activities may include:
- Ensuring that the permit to work system and other health, safety and environmental (HSE) management tools are used correctly
- Conducting pre-tour meetings with rig crews
- Coordinating rig moves with the client and transportation personnel
- Managing the set up and take down of rigs
- Coordinating rig crews
- Resolving operational and personnel issues with rig crews and contractors
In addition to the requirements below, specific requirements in renewables may include:
- Knowledge of geothermal energy production. (geothermal)
- Familiarity with well intervention techniques such as wireline, coiled tubing or snubbing. (geothermal)
- Understanding of maintaining fluid column hydrostatic and formation pressure. (geothermal)
- Knowledge of environmental laws and regulations in operating areas. (geothermal)
Education
- A high school diploma is required, along with extensive experience working in a rig environment. Additional education, such as college or industry-approved training courses or a post-secondary diploma in petroleum engineering technology may be preferred by some employers.
Certifications
- Standard and emergency first aid
- Construction Safety Training System (CSTS)
- Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS)
- H2S Alive®
- Transportation of dangerous goods (TDG)
- Confined space entry
- Fall protection and rig rescue
- Aerial Lift Training
- Traffic Control
- Respirator fit training
- High angle rescue, loader evaluator
- Second line well control (drilling rig managers) or well service well control (service rig managers)
- Safety management and regulatory awareness for well site supervision
- Electronic General Safety Orientation (eGSO)
- Detection and control of flammable substance
Licensing
- Although Rig Technician journeyman certification is not a legal requirement for this occupation, rig managers are encouraged to apply for a journeyman certificate
- Valid class 5 driving licence
Nature of work and environment conditions specific to renewables include:
- Shiftwork/variable work hours (geothermal)
- Travel required (geothermal)
- Work away from home/in camps (geothermal)
- Primarily outdoor work (geothermal)
- Physical work (geothermal)
- Temporary/project-to-project work (geothermal)
- Freelance/contract opportunities (geothermal)
- Lower-risk tolerant culture (geothermal)
- Safety-sensitive environment (geothermal)
- Transition to a similar level (geothermal)
Nature of work and environment conditions specific to oil and natural gas include:
- Travel likely required
- Shiftwork/variable work hours
- Primarily indoor/office work
- Physical work
- Safety-sensitive environment
- Work away from home/in camps
- Low risk environment
You’re a strong communicator, highly organized, detail oriented and can perform well under pressure. You gain the respect of your crew when you demonstrate your hands-on technical skills, and efficient problem solving capabilities.
- Mechanical
- Judgment and decision making
- Operation and control
- Planning and organizing
- Public safety and security
- Troubleshooting
- Administration and management
- Managing conflict
- Attention to detail
- Law and government
- Transportation
