Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) has staged an extensive training course to boost the management skills of Super Local Community Contractor (SLCC) board members.
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The Company’s In-Country Value Operations team worked with the Oman Centre for Corporate Governance and Sustainability (OCCGS) to provide the nine-day workshop in wilayat Sohar.
More than 40 SLCC board members and the Ministerial Action team (comprising representatives from the Ministry of Oil and Gas, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Commerce and Industry and PDO) participated in the programme.
The workshop was held to help raise the awareness of the SLCC executives on a range of important business areas including their roles and responsibilities, corporate governance, commercial law, marketing, finance and performance monitoring.
The SLCCs were established by PDO as community-owned companies providing a range of core oil and gas activities, including hoist operations, wellhead maintenance and flowline replacement. They employ around 800 Omanis, have a capital value of more than RO 23 million and are owned by around 9,400 shareholders from communities in the PDO concession area.
PDO External Affairs and Value Creation Director Abdul-Amir Abdul-Hussein Al Ajmi said: “We are determined to increase Omani capacity and capability in our industry and beyond through our In-Country Value policy to retain more of the wealth of the oil and gas industry in Oman”.
“The SLCCs are making tremendous strides in helping to achieve this by winning contracts, training staff and distributing dividends to their community investors. It is important that their progress is sustained, especially during this challenging period, with high-calibre boards who are confidently can make the right decisions at the right times.”
Currently, there are five SLCCs: Al Sahari, Al Baraka, Al Shawamikh, Al Haditha and Al Khazain, and four have direct contracts with PDO in its core business. The current value of contracts awarded to the SLCCs is more than US$585 million and the value of work executed by them during 2015 was equivalent to US$96.3 million.
The training came after PDO signed an agreement with OCCGS in January to ensure the Company and its contracting community continue to operate to the highest performance and ethical standards. Under the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding, OCCGS provides training, development and advisory services in corporate governance and sustainability.
PDO In-Country Value Operations Manager Khalfan Al Busaidy said: “The workshop showcased PDO’s continuous commitment to support government directives to provide a sustainable environment for SLCCs. We remain committed with our partners to enhancing the capabilities, competencies, development and growth of SLCCs.”
PDO has staged a series of workshops for Omani businesses to help improve performance and bolster corporate governance standards. Last week, its joined forces with Riyadh, the Public Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises Development, to coach 60 of its members in new ways to boost sales performance, marketing and customer service.