To what extent is the PNG education system and job
market producing well-qualified candidates?
In other sectors, they are, but with oil and gas, we’re not
there yet. I believe geology and similar subjects are covered
in PNG, but there’s no specialised oil and gas engineering
school. We just require some supplementary training to
bridge these gaps. However, Kumul Petroleum also has an
academy through which we are producing technicians for
the industry. Operations, mechanical, maintenance and
electrical training – the institute provides training
specifically for the oil and gas field. We try to improve
the skills of individuals so they can work effectively in
the industry; not in terms of white-collar jobs, but in the
blue-collar, technician jobs.
How important is it for companies to have that kind
of educational process to try and help improve the
workforce as a whole?
I think it’s extremely important. When we started work
on the PNG LNG project, we had all these skilled jobs
- welding, pipe bending, even scaffolding and safety – but
a lot of those skills came from outside PNG. We realised
we needed those skills internally, and that’s why we’ve started
training technicians. In the next phase of development, there
will be enough people in the country who can take on
a good share of those skilled jobs that will be needed.How would you describe the culture of
your company?
It’s a new company, so everybody’s very energetic. They see
we’re in the centre of everything – upstream, midstream,
downstream – and that we’re working alongside a lot of the
best companies in the industry and the world. They see it is
a growing company. Kumul is expanding and building good
relationships and alliances with other companies, producing
different skills and addressing different needs. As a result,
it’s a very dynamic company. Everybody is really excited
to work for it. We also compensate them well and we’re
very competitive in the labour market.How do you view Kumul’s relationship with
environmental protection?
Working with, and being a partner of, some of the biggest
oil and gas companies encourages environmental awareness.
Kumul’s requirements on safety and the environment are
high. So a major part of the company’s key focus areasHalf page advert
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