Total targets 150 youth in oil and gas course
What you need to know:
The successful beneficiaries will be trained over the next four years in partnership with Uganda Petroleum Institute Kigumba (UPIK) to become production operators, maintenance and inspection technicians
Total Energies has launched the Tilenga Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), a free initiative to build local capacity that will enable more Ugandans and local businesses to participate in the oil sector.
Mr Phillipe Groueix, the general manager, Total Energies, says the programme is aimed at identifying 150 talented Ugandans who will be further trained and recruited to participate in the Tilenga production startup phase.
Training
The successful beneficiaries will be trained over the next four years in partnership with Uganda Petroleum Institute Kigumba (UPIK) to become production operators, maintenance and inspection technicians.
The training will be followed by international training exposure at a Total Energies producing site.
The course targeting mainly youth, will have emphasis on people living within the Tilenga Project areas.
“This specialised training programme is an initiative by Total Energies EP Uganda to skill Ugandans and it consists of free courses with content related to basic mathematics, physics, oil production, HSE and discovery of our activities,” Mr Groueix says.
Total Energies’ national content strategy has so far benefitted over 2,200 Ugandans employed within the company’s workforce. This figure is expected to increase to approximately 8000 during the construction phase.
The energy conglomerate has also spent over $2.5m (Shs8.8b) on technology transfer and capacity building initiatives with more than 4,000 beneficiaries empowered and skilled to prepare them to serve in the oil and gas sector and beyond.
These initiatives include; skilling programmes such as certified welder training, quality Control-NDT Inspector training, scaffolder training, and heavy goods vehicle driver training, supplier development workshops, scholarships, and supporting education institutions.
“Majority of these initiatives are delivered by Ugandan companies and thus benefit the trainees as well as the companies. More initiatives are under development such as the industry enhancement centre, supplier HSE training and the community supplier development program,” he says.
Ugandans’ input
Mr Groueix says the energy conglomerate has contracted 160 Ugandan companies to provide a variety of goods and services including; transport and logistics, camp management, catering, medical, information technology and communication, security, civil works, manpower and training services among others.
