Oil field training centre for Ghana

Since it was announced that Ghana had found oil in commercial quantities in June 2007, the country has become the destination point for all the sectors in the global oil industry, including training institutions.

A report on the website Oil Online says, Oilennium Ltd, a leading provider of training programmes for the international oil and gas industry, has announced that it is joining forces with Oilfield Training Center Ghana (OTC) to develop a series of new interactive training programmes specifically designed for Ghana’s emerging oil and gas industry.

OTC, which is a joint venture between two established oilfield service companies based in the Gulf of Guinea, operates from its training facilities in Takoradi in the Western region of Ghana.

The report indicates that it is the first time that the company has looked to a specialist oil and gas training development company to supply its educational programmes.

The two companies will draw upon their knowledge of the oil and gas industry, as well as expertise in designing effective training materials and educational tools.

This partnership, the report says, is designed to meet the many important training challenges associated with the oil and gas industry that are unique to Ghana.

The new programme will be designed to ensure that every employee who successfully completes the programme has a firm grasp of Safe Working practices and the Health and Safety regulations when working offshore and onshore.

The programme will be comprised of nine modules, including Working Safely, Permit to Work, COSHH, Manual Handling and Working at Height. Ultimately, the programme will be delivered to participants via Oilennium’s interactive classroom-based system. Oilennium is also producing a one-day introductory course on Health and Safety, and one-day PUWER and LOLER courses, which will be interactive classroom courses.

For OTC, the decision to retain Oilennium was based in large part upon the effectiveness of its training materials and programmes, which offer a high level of interaction with the trainee.

“We invested a considerable amount of time and energy in identifying the materials that best serve our needs. This was critical because we are relying on it to provide quality services to our clients,” said Gavin King, Center Manager for OTC.

“The delegate interaction available throughout the training modules provides tangible added value to our clients at no additional cost. This represents an excellent opportunity for us, not only to ensure participation and understanding, but for OTC to differentiate itself from the competition. For core training material, we feel that Oilennium’s range of learning tools represents the best available,” he added.

The promoters believe this unique partnership will be the beginning of a relation that would launch their services in the oil industry in West Africa.

By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi