(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) Muscat- With the opening of a new US$20mn factory in Sohar, Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) will start sourcing key well construction parts locally for its oilfields.
Every year PDO spends approximately US$100mn on importing casing and tubing from China. However, PDO has worked with Chinese manufacturer Changbao to set up a new tubing threading and finishing plant where plain tubing will be sourced from China and then threaded and finished in the new facility in the Sohar Free Zone, according to a press release.
The move will kick off the process of localising seamless oil country tubular goods (OCTG) technology.
The Changbao Oman Oil Pipe Company LLC facility will provide 30 jobs when it runs at maximum capacity and the aim is to Omanise all positions over the coming years. It was officially opened on Monday in the presence of Changbao chairman Cao Jian and PDO's wells operations manager Said al Mahrooqi.
Mahrooqi said, 'We have been working hard to retain more of the wealth of our industry in-country by Omanising the manufacturing and supply of key oil and gas equipment. The opening of this factory is another milestone in this journey and we thank our partner Changbao for making this significant investment in Oman.'
He added that the new plant will not only reduce the cost of tubing and casing for PDO wells but also shorten delivery times to oil fields.
The facility will have a threading capacity of 50,000MT a year and also offer storage and repair services.
PDO's well engineering directorate currently spends US$1.8bn on local contracts as the company ramps up its in-country value policy to generate Omani job and training opportunities and develop a robust and skilled local supply chain.
MENAFN2310201701410000ID1095979802
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.