Lamprell will close one of its fabrication yards after completing work for the UK’s Moray East offshore wind project as part of cost-cutting measures by the Middle East contractor following the coronavirus pandemic.

Lamprell will close its Sharjah facility in the United Arab Emirates once work on Moray East's foundations is completed and mothball a second yard in a move to save $23m this year.

The company – a stalwart of the global oil & gas sector, which has been hit hard by the fallout from the pandemic – said it is operating “in a period of unprecedented global uncertainty” and is gearing up for lower revenues and contract volumes.

A statement announcing the closures said: “Bidding activity continues in both of our end markets of oil & gas and renewables but we are seeing signs of deceleration and delays in some awards.”

Lamprell is supplying 48 turbine and substation jackets to the 950MW Moray East project being built off Scotland by European power giants EDPR and Engie. The project is due to enter service in 2022 using 9.5MW MHI Vestas turbines.

The contractor said work on Moray East was continuing and the first jackets had been delivered to the developer “on time and on budget”.

Lamprell will for the time being focus all its operations on a single yard, Hamriyah, which it said offers room for expansion if work allows.

The UAE-based group is among a clutch of oil & gas contractors hoping to find new revenue streams in the offshore wind sector. Lamprell’s first foray into wind, a deal to supply jackets to Iberdrola’s East Anglia 1, was dogged by operational and pricing problems, but the company said it had learned the lessons and remained committed to renewables.

The awarding of major deals to Lamprell and other overseas contractors has been the source of bitter criticism from UK trade unions, which claim too much of the economic benefit from the nation's world-leading offshore wind build-out is leaking overseas.