British energy services company Subsea 7 said it was trimming its labor force by more than 1,000 in an effort to adjust to the era of lower oil prices.

The company said it would cut about 1,200 positions by early 2017 because of "difficult" conditions in the oil and gas sector.

Crude oil prices are holding relatively stable at around $50 per barrel, up more than $20 per barrel from their low point in 2016. Despite the midterm recovery, the price per barrel is still more than $50 less than it was just two years ago.

The downturn has forced many in the industry to cut back on spending and lay off staff. An executive with Royal Dutch Shell said last month from Scotland that at least 2,200 jobs will be trimmed from the payroll as the industry struggles to move through the downturn.

"The reduction in the size of our workforce is a necessary step to maintain our competitiveness and protect our core offering through the oil price cycle," Subsea 7 CEO Jean Cahuzac said in a statement.

The company said consultations are under way with staff and their representatives in Norway and the United Kingdom.

Subsea 7 entered June with an announcement that a contract for offshore Brazil was canceled about six months early, leaving it without a day-rate contract in one of the more vibrant offshore sectors.

In mid-June, industry group Oil & Gas U.K. said as many as 40,000 jobs in the British oil and gas sector could vanish by the end of the year as the strains from the low price of oil mount. Jobs supported by the oil and gas sector since oil prices peaked at around $100 per barrel in 2014 have fallen by 120,000. Another 40,000 losses are expected by the end of this year even as oil recovers to the $50 range, after falling below $30 per barrel earlier this year, it said.

Apart from staffing cuts, Subsea 7 said it was shaking up its front office to focus more on long-term strategic priorities.

"We remain confident in the long-term future for deepwater oil and gas production," Cahuzac said. "We are committed to retaining our core capabilities and developing our leading market position through a strategy focused on differentiation delivered by our people, assets and technology."