US-based Energy supplier Hess is outsourcing its IT infrastructure to IBM in a five-and-a-half year contract valued at US$73 million, the company announced last week.

The move will affect about 50 Hess IT employees, either with a job loss or change in employer to IBM, said Will Rey, a spokesman for the New York-based company.

Hess has managed its IT in-house, but Rey said the demands of a growing 24/7 operation, as well as meeting the needs of an increasing mobile workforce, prompted the company to change its IT approach. "We are much more a global player," Rey said.

IBM will take responsibility for hardware support, including servers and desktop services, some managed at Hess facilities and others at IBM. Hess will maintain its application support and development in-house.

The two companies signed the agreement last month.

In a statement, Hess CIO Pete Walton said, "We are confident that this agreement will help us better serve our businesses, particularly as it is consistent with our larger effort to create a competitive advantage through technology. We look forward to leveraging IBM's recognized best-in-class tools, processes and expertise."