Africa-Press – Angola. The Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Diamantino Azevedo, defended, this Thursday, in Luanda, greater participation of Angolan companies in the provision of services to the oil sector.
To this end, the government official, who opened the 3rd workshop on “Local Content – the foundation for the sustainable growth of Angolan business”, highlighted the premises created so that companies owned by Angolan citizens could organize themselves technically and financially, as well how to qualify to participate in competitions for the provision of services and supply of goods of national origin.
He highlighted Presidential Decree No. 271/20 of 20 October, Local Content Law for the Petroleum Sector, which constitutes one of the foundations of the Executive’s policy to guarantee the participation of Angolan staff and technicians and the insertion of national business in the entire value chain of the oil sector.
Diamantino Azevedo said that, over the years, to respond to the great dependence on foreign technicians and companies, the Government of Angola approved several legal diplomas, the implementation of which was known as the “Process of Angolanization of the oil sector”.
Local Content, according to the minister, initially aims to recruit, train and develop a national workforce.
“With the development of the national oil industry, moving from oil exploration and production in shallow waters to deeper waters, the technical complexity and knowledge required increased, leading to the continuous improvement of diplomas on Local Content”, he highlighted.
The definition and requirements of Local Content, he said, were evolving and as a result new legal diplomas were approved, aiming not only at the insertion of the workforce, but also at the provision of services by local companies.
Local Content is understood as any and all activity in the oil sector that includes the participation of businesspeople and national citizens, companies governed by Angolan law, as well as the use of goods and services produced in Angola, recruitment, integration, training and development of the Angolan workforce, in a consistent and sustainable way.
On the other hand, both operating companies and service providers, in accordance with the Decree’s assumptions, must give priority to hiring local companies, for services covered by the exclusivity regime, in accordance with the list published annually by the National Agency of Oil, Gas and Biofuels (ANPG).
In turn, the ANPG Local Content Management technician, João Santiago, made it known that the agency has already certified 640 national companies to provide services to the oil sector.
He also indicated that 1,480 other national companies are registered on the agency’s portal and are awaiting the process of evaluation and processing of the information received, inspection visit, for subsequent certification.
He added that the majority of certified companies provide less complex services in the oil sector, which includes administrative support, among others.
On the other hand, the coordinator of the ANPG Local Nucleus, Maura Nunes, stated that there are Angolan companies capable of providing services to the oil sector, and, in terms of exclusivity, there are 5 percent of approved contracts and 9 percent of goods and services.
“The objective is to increase more Angolan companies in providing services in the oil sector, both under the preference and exclusivity regime”, he highlighted.
The president of the Board of Directors (PCA) of ANPG, Paulino Jerónimo, said that the 3rd workshop on Local Content aimed to analyze the implementation of the law for the oil sector, listen to businesspeople about the challenges, as well as evaluate the sustainable growth of Angolan companies providing services in the sector.
The event, promoted by ANPG, was attended by representatives of companies in the oil sector and technicians from the aforementioned agency.
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