Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) has signed a co-operation agreement with the Oman Centre for Corporate Governance and Sustainability (OCCGS) 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 (MoU), OCCGS will provide training, development and advisory services in corporate governance and sustainability.
The agreement was signed by PDO Managing Director Raoul Restucci and OCCGS Executive Director Sayyid Hamid bin Sultan Al Busaidi.
Mr Restucci said: “PDO has always been committed to being a good corporate citizen, putting honesty, integrity and fairness at the centre of everything we do. We believe in transparency and accountability and this is another step forward in our efforts to ensure compliance to business ethics and anti-corruption policies.
“This agreement will enable us to benefit from the services provided by OCCGS to reinforce governance and sustainability and to work with our contractors to embed best practices both in their dealings with us and with their own personnel.”
Under the terms of the MoU, OCCGS will provide support and advisory services in the preparation of policies and manuals relating to corporate governance and sustainability.
The organisation, which is tasked with building the infrastructure, skills and value system to transform corporate behaviours and performance in Oman, will also provide governance training for PDO staff and contractors while offering administrative technical consultations, research and studies in this area.
Moreover, the agreement covers other companies working in the concession area which will benefit from training opportunities and the guidelines, charters and corporate governance and social responsibility policies which the OCCGS will prepare.
OCCGS Executive Director Sayyid Hamid Al Busaidi said: “We are delighted to sign this MoU as it is a positive step for the energy sector especially in light of the present challenges and risks arising from the economic conditions experienced by the Sultanate.
“The OCCGS plays a leading role in supporting the national economy by providing governance services, and this MOU shows the high level of awareness in PDO regarding this issue. We hope that other institutions will follow PDO’s example.”
In January 2015, PDO became the first national oil company in the Gulf to become a member of the United Nations Global Compact – the largest voluntary corporate social responsibility initiative in the world. Under the terms of the agreement, the Company is committed to supporting the UNGC’s 10 universal principles on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. It also produced its first ever Sustainability Report outlining in detail its commitment to ethical business, the community, environment, economy and its own staff, to back its application.
It has also launched an industry-first programme called Project Prism focused on the welfare of 30,000 employees in its contactor workforce.