PDO celebrates 40th anniversary of gas production in Oman

Muscat: Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) celebrated the 40th anniversary of gas production in the Sultanate, recalling the company’s first gas plant inaugurated by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said on October 29, 1978.
In a statement posted online, the company said, “Today marks the 40th anniversary of #PDO gas production. Oman’s gas industry was born with PDO’s Yibal Gas Plant, which was officially opened by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said on October 29, 1978.”
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Speaking to the Times of Oman, Ibrahim Al Waili, PDO’s Gas Planning and Economic Manager, noted, “This achievement means a lot to me, to everybody employed by PDO, and the gas directorate in the company.
“Since 1978, when the ‘Yibal’ station was brought on stream and started producing gas, production has continued to the present day and, God willing, will continue for many years to come.”
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Commenting about the company’s other major accomplishments since gas production began, Al Waili stated, “Another achievement has been sending large amounts of gas out of the country through Oman LNG in Sur. It is very important and adds a lot to the income of the country, adds in-country value, and it certainly adds to the overall economy of the Sultanate.
“The discovery of giant fields of gas would be another. Most of the fields we have currently in production were somewhat discovered by PDO.”
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Al Waili, however, maintained that the company’s employees remain among its proudest achievements. “We have 8,000 employees at PDO, out of which maybe 10% work in the gas directorate. But we also contribute 40% of PDO’s overall income. So we are very proud of our people, not just those that work in the main office, but also those in the interior.”
As for what the next 40 years holds for the company, Al Waili was highly optimistic.
“The future, in the long-term, is quite bright. I think it will be interesting times for gas and energy, in general.
“We are not just focusing on our core business, gas and oil, but we also focus on alternative energies. That’s the future of Petroleum Development Oman. It will not only focus on oil and gas, not only on fossil related energy. It will go beyond that.”