Thursday 28 / November / 2024
Muscat: An inaugural accomplishment by a local company, Al Shawamikh Oil Services (Al Shawamikh), a leading Super Local Community Contractor (SLCC), has received two hi-tech automated hoists, the first of their kind in the Sultanate.
These hoists are committed to service within Petroleum Development Oman’s (PDO) assigned concession areas of Bahla and Adam in North Oman.
The arrival of these hoists is made possible through a strategic alliance with Highwood Global, a leading Canadian manufacturer of trusted oil services equipment.
The equipment was air-freighted aboard an Antonov-124, one of the largest cargo planes in the world, which recently landed at Muscat International Airport – a rare occurrence in the Sultanate. These hoists will contribute to enhancing the quality of oil extraction services and elevating the skills of Omani technicians and engineers in the oil and gas sector.
Weighing more than 120 tonnes in total, the hoists were designed and manufactured to the highest international standards and assembled in record time, despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
For Al Shawamikh, the successful delivery of the hoists from Canada to the Sultanate, within half the time it usually takes to manufacture and ship such equipment, represents a major milestone in its history.
Complex technical machines of this kind typically take about a year to design, fabricate and deliver. Adding to the remarkable feat was the company’s deployment of a giant Antonov-124 cargo plane to ship these hoists instead of via the normal ocean route.
Its partner in this commendable initiative, Highwood Global, will be laying the groundwork for a national project centralised on the establishment of a factory specialising in assembling, servicing and maintaining hoists in the Sultanate.
The project will enable the transfer of specialist technology and know-how to the Sultanate – a goal enshrined in Oman Vision 2040, which seeks to enhance economic diversification notably through the advancement of the industrial sector, and supporting In-Country Value (ICV) development linked to oil and gas projects.
Dr Aflah Al-Hadhrami, CEO of Al Shawamikh said, “The strategic partnership between Al Shawamikh and Highwood has won praise from the Ministry of Energy and Minerals and among other institutions and companies in the oil and gas sector, for promoting the transfer of the latest hoists technology in this vital sector. This partnership achieves one of the objectives of Oman Vision 2040 by enabling the transfer of technologies while also attracting foreign investment into the Sultanate, notably through the establishment of a national factory by Highwood, the first of its kind locally, to manufacture this type of hoists with the ‘Made in Oman’ label. This project will contribute to ICV development and local added value, besides creating job opportunities for nationals, raising the level of local competencies in the oil and gas sector and open up prospects for the expansion of Al Shawamikh in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region.”
Al-Hadhrami praised the unrelenting support of PDO in empowering major local SLCCs in its concession areas in line with the Royal Directives of the late His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said in 2011 – a move that has helped such companies build their competitive capabilities locally, regionally and internationally.
Al Shawamikh today represents the success story of this support to empower, nurture and build local capabilities and ICV development. The latest Omani-Canadian partnership agreement will lead to raising the level of production and advancing the components of the national economy.
“From this standpoint, we see the potential to harness all capabilities in developing the skillset of Omanis across various disciplines, while also raising efficiency levels, as well as the technologies and quality of services now available to our customers, shareholders and the local communities in which we serve,” he added.
The strategic partnership with Highwood Global, said Al-Hadhrami, encouraged Highwood Global to establish a national factory specialising in the production of hi-tech ‘Made in Oman’ goods and services at Lekhwair – operated and managed by a workforce of more than 150 Omanis.
Kevin Kerr, CEO of Highwood Global, said the new plant will enable modern drilling rig technologies to be transferred to Oman for the benefit of operators and service providers in the wider Middle East region. Further, as part of its strategic partnership with Al Shawamikh, the Canadian firm also launched a branch of the company, to be named ‘Highwood Oman’, as a demonstration of its support for its Omani partner and to affirm its commitment to providing truly high-quality services to the Omani market.
It is worth noting that Al Shawamikh is one of the leading SLCC companies, set up as a private national joint-stock company with 100 per cent Omani ownership. It was established in 2011 to serve as an investment vehicle for citizens residing in the oil concession areas in the wilayats of Bahla and Adam. Al Shawamikh aspires to develop Omani citizens by attracting expertise and competencies from various countries to strengthen local capabilities and ensure the company's continued growth locally, regionally and globally.
In June 2020, Al Shawamikh embarked on an internal transformation initiative aptly named the “Journey of Excellence”. This strategic alliance with Highwood Global, a leader in oil and gas equipment manufacturing as well as the record-breaking delivery of top-end hoists into Oman via the Antonov, are monumental feats, a testament to Al Shawamikh’s focus and aggressive pursuit of its vision for the future.
