Africa-Press – Angola. Angola inaugurated on Friday the first Training and Certification Center (CFWC) for oil sector professionals. This autonomous institution validates the competence of its staff in an initiative of the National Petroleum Institute.
Located on the premises of the Petroleum By-products Regulatory Institute (IRDP) on the Luanda waterfront, the center features two multimedia rooms, an assessment simulator laboratory, a training room, and a coordination office.
Diamantino Azevedo, the Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil, and Gas, said that Angola will no longer depend on foreign institutions to train and certify national oil sector professionals or to control oil wells.
Prior to the center’s inauguration, Angola relied on foreign institutions for staff certification. Even when training was done locally, certification came from outside the country. This reality will change with the Angolan center’s entry into operation.
According to Alegria Raul Joaquim, the director general of the National Petroleum Institute, the project was budgeted at 600,000 US dollars. He considers the emergence of the CFWC a “turning point” since, until recently, certifications in well control for Angolan staff were obtained outside the country.
He said the opening of the center marks the culmination of a process that began in 2017 when the National Petroleum Institute became a member of the International Well Control Forum (IWCF) and the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC). This made it the first Angolan public institution to establish a training center for drilling and well control.
According to Alegria Joaquim, international institutions typically charge 1,500 US dollars for each certification, which includes five days of training.
“We are currently preparing the price list, but we guarantee that local training will be more economical. Our local customers will not have to spend money on travel, lodging, and other expenses, as they would if they traveled outside the country,” he said.
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