MODEC and Tullow Ghana Limited have partnered with the Regional Maritime University (RMU) to build a state-of-the-art Welder Training Centre on its campus in Accra.

The 1.6 million dollar training centre will be accredited by the American Welding Society (AWS) and its training programmes will be in modules which will accommodate 20 students at a time.The first of its kind, the centre is equipped with the best welding equipment and training technology in the region.

According to Project Manager of MODEC Ing. Papa Benin, the initiative is in support of the country’s desire to realize a larger local representation in the oil and gas sector.

“This partnership between MODEC and RMU is a mutually benefiting enterprise,” said Ing. Papa Benin. “In that both organizations get the opportunity to leave footprints in Ghana’s agenda of becoming labour sufficient in the oil and gas industry and the destination for internationally accepted training programmes and institutions.”

The Regional Maritime University was chosen for this initiative after meetings and provisional visits were conducted to potential sites to identify viable and realistic locations for the proposed Welder Training Centre in 2013. The school already had a welder training facility and its vision to produce local labor for the oil and gas industry was in tandem with MODEC’s dedication to Ghana’s petroleum local content policy and the recognition of the skill and certification gap among locals in welding and fabrication.

“Majority of indigenous people who call themselves ‘welders and fabricators’ do not have any formal education and practical training as well as the required international certifications,” said Neil Woodcock, Country Manager, MODEC. “This lack of certification makes the engagement of Ghanaian welders difficult in the upstream petroleum sector. It is for this reason that MODEC has embarked on this capital intensive project to bridge the skill gap in the oil and gas sector.”

Lauding MODEC and Tullow Ghana for the initiative, Provost of Regional Maritime University, Ing. Addy Lamptey pledged continual and proper maintenance of the facilities.

“We are grateful to our partners and are extremely excited that we are on our way to achieving our aim of churning out an increased skilled-labor pool for engineering associated companies and in the long run help Ghana’s quest to become a major energy hub in the Region,” he said.

The Welder Training Centre is expected to accept its first class of students in July, 2016.