Muscat: Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) signed contracts with Arabian Industries Project (AIP) and Special Technical Services (STS) totaling US$4 Billion for project delivery, maintenance, and integrity work in the North and South of its concession area.

These contracts will aim to develop and execute more than 200 onsite projects for PDO. The agreements are scheduled for a duration of seven years with a clause for an extension of three more years.

These contracts will also greatly enable Omanisation by up to 100 per cent. There are also plans to train and enable over 2,500 Omanis to be employed during the service life, including incumbent employees from PDO.

The contracts were signed at the PDO headquarters in Mina Al-Fahal and the event was attended by the PDO’s managing director, Raoul Restucci.

Representing AIP and STS were the managing directors – Amer Al-Sulaimani and Alex Clark, respectively, who were accompanied by the CEOs of the companies, Sadiq Sulaiman and Rejeesh Mani.

Speaking about the new agreement, Restucci commented: “These strategic agreements create a win-win culture for PDO, our partner contractors, and Oman, in that they maximize capital efficiency, generate multi-million-dollar savings and enhance In-Country Value (ICV) opportunities.

“They represent a benchmark of best practice by capturing the lessons learned over the past 17 years from engineering, maintenance, and construction contracts across our concession area,” he added.

“We expect to transition seamlessly from our existing on-plot deals in the coming months, and work hand-in-hand with AIP and STS to deliver a large portfolio of projects safely, responsibly, and efficiently.

“Considering the sheer size and dimensions of these contracts, embedding such improvements within 15 months of the tendering period during the COVID-19 pandemic is an outstanding achievement.

I congratulate and thank all those responsible for bringing these agreements to fruition, as they will generate exceptional value both for our Company and the country,” the managing director stated.

As a part of the scope of the contracts, AIP will conduct project delivery in the North of Block 6, and maintenance and integrity work in the South; while STS will be at the helm for project delivery in the South and maintenance and integrity in the North.

Managing director Alex Clark from STS also stated: “These landmark contracts mark a new level of collaboration between PDO and STS.

“They build on a long-standing relationship which spans more than three decades and encompasses a significant number of projects undertaken in Oman. Most importantly, the award of these contracts represents a major step forward for the development and employment of the local workforce.

“In collaboration with PDO, STS will also be developing Omanis at all levels of the contract organisation – from the site workforce to contract leadership and management.

“The award of these contracts will ensure that STS can build further on its impressive and dedicated track record of national growth and training.”

Additionally, the contracts aim to enable and nurture an Omani company to execute maintenance and integrity tasks in selected clusters in the PDO oil and gas portfolio in the coming five years.