It looks after everything from oil and gas to nuclear, renewable and alternative energy projects, as well as advising on tax and regulatory compliance.

However, in the wake of the financial crisis and with a focus on regulatory compliance, attitudes have hardened.

While such grand projects had since been scaled back, he said costs of regulatory compliance had continued to push fees higher.

A net three quarters of respondents told the report's authors that they planned to boost their spending on regulatory compliance.

It has also become a centre of ship management operations, undertaking functions such as vessel repair and maintenance, maritime regulatory compliance and crewing.