OPAL’s mandate as voice of oil and gas industry affirmed

MUSCAT: OPAL’s role as the voice of Oman’s oil and gas industry was roundly and enthusiastically endorsed by Salim bin Nasser al Aufi, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Oil and Gas, at the Society’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) held here recently.

Members representing the upstream operators, contractors, consultants and service providers that together make up Oman’s thriving oil and gas community, filled the ballroom of the Crowne Plaza Muscat in unprecedented numbers — a development that exemplified the strides that OPAL has made in recent years as a truly representative organisation of the industry.

Heartened by the large turnout, Under-Secretary Salim al Aufi remarked, “The Oil & Gas industry needs an organisation like OPAL to be its voice; OPAL is actually demonstrating that it is delivering on that promise.”

Addressing the gathering, the Under-Secretary described OPAL as one of the “strongest professional societies” that Oman can presently boast of. “This is by far the most professional and the most representative of communities in the Sultanate. It needs to make sure it gets your continued support,” he stressed.

Earlier, Al Aufi recalled the pivotal role that OPAL has played — and continues to play — in fashioning a safety-net for Omanis threatened with layoffs in the wake of the oil price plunge. A ‘Redeployment Strategy’ rolled out in conjunction with the Ministry of Oil and Gas and the Ministry of Manpower helped secure alternative employment for an estimated 4,500 Omanis within the industry. A further 600 Omani oilfield staff are currently being put through the redeployment process, and if OPAL’s past success is any judge, then finding suitable employment — or equitable compensation in lieu — for the balance number should not be difficult, he noted.

But the focus of redeployment efforts, he stressed, should primarily be directed at Omanis who are being made redundant on account of a contract being shelved or truncated because of the constrained economic situation. Excluded from the purview of this effort are those being made redundant as a result of their contracts coming to a natural end — an outcome that has nothing to do with the current economic situation, the Under-Secretary pointed out.

Al Aufi cited in particular the laudable role of the oil and gas operators in securing alternative openings for retrenched Omani workers. “A lot of thanks are due to OPAL and the operating companies in this regard. We put a lot of burden on the shoulders of the operators. Although the redeployment process required them to only audit the efforts done by the contractors in securing alternative jobs for laid off workers, the operators ended up doing a lot of the work themselves. They spent a lot of time and effort to redeploy Omanis, and I thank them for their support.”

Also deserving of praise is OPAL and its executive management headed by CEO Musallam al Mandhri, the Under-Secretary noted. “As the voice of the industry, OPAL has done a tremendous amount of work in reaching out to individual contractors, understanding the challenges they are facing, and then sounding out members who can chip in with support.”

But further challenges lie ahead, the Under-Secretary warned, as he urged the community to close ranks with OPAL to find suitable solutions to a new round of anticipated layoffs in the industry.

Having delivered admirably on its role in driving the redeployment strategy, OPAL is now well-positioned to take on more responsibilities and tasks that are in sync with its mandate as the industry’s voice, said Al Aufi.

He invited OPAL to engage with the drilling and hoist community in harmonizing the various job titles in vogue in this section of the industry with the job titles classified by the Ministry of Manpower in their systems. The exercise, targeted for completion before the end of this year, will provide an accurate picture of the actual number of positions available for redeployment when an anticipated job squeeze begins to imperil drilling and hoist activities.

Also in keeping with its remit as the industry’s voice, OPAL has the potential to serve as the focal point for the vetting of all applications for labour clearances sought by oilfield contractors, said the Under-Secretary. He explained: “Just as the Central Bank of Oman vets and endorses requests for labour clearances from commercial banks before they are passed on to the Manpower Ministry for action, the Manpower Ministry has approached us to perform the same role on behalf of the oil and gas sector. MOG cannot do it all by itself, and so we would request OPAL to share in this responsibility. While MOG will likely take upon itself the task of verifying and endorsing labour clearance requests from the operators, perhaps OPAL can handle requests from the contractors.”

Al Aufi was also unstinting in his praise for OPAL for having delivered on its promise to get the industry to agree common standards in the following areas:

1. Road Safety: This common set of standards for the entire oil and gas industry will soon replace the diverse and disparate sets of standards and specs presently enforced by individual operators with regard to, among other things, speed limits, driver’s age, IVMS, certification, licensing, road safety training and so on.

2. Camp Standards: Described as a milestone by the Under-Secretary, these guidelines prescribe minimum standards for staff camps operated in the oilfield regions of Oman — a measure that also affirms the industry’s commitment to caring for its workers.

3. Heat Stress Mitigation: Agreed in collaboration with the Ministry of Manpower, these guidelines prescribe a set of mitigation measures that shall be adopted by operators and contractors with a view to safeguarding their oilfield staff from the harmful effects of exposure to the noonday heat especially in summer.

In this regard, the Under-Secretary credited OPAL’s success in the compilation of the this trio of standards to the sense of unity and purpose that has got its members to rally together in support of common goals.

Urging the members to remain cohesive and collaborative in their pursuit of common objectives, he said: “OPAL represents you; Its success comes from the support that you give OPAL. Please make the most of OPAL because they are there for you. If you have challenges, say with the Manpower Ministry, MOG, Ministry of Environmental and Climate Affairs, and so on, OPAL can represent all of you and get any issues sorted out because they are the industry’s voice. OPAL has my support too. United you are stronger through OPAL!”

In concluding, Al Aufi also urged the members to work — rather that compete — with OPAL in achieving the common interests of the industry. By joining ranks with OPAL, the industry can benefit from an organisation that is not only by far the most professional among established societies in Oman, but also truly representative of the oil and gas sector, he added.