• Thursday, March 28, 2024
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Nigeria’s Local content: Siemens Energy, GIL Automation partner on joint project execution, trainings

Nigeria’s Local content: Siemens Energy, GIL Automation partner on joint project execution, trainings

In a move to strengthen its partnership with its automation portfolio in Nigeria, Siemens Energy has signed an agreement with GIL Automation, which will allow the local firm access skill development, training and joint project execution at Siemens Energy Rotating Equipment Workshop in Port Harcourt.

Local content development is critical for countries like Nigeria that are rich in natural resources but whose oil and gas sector has traditionally operated in isolation from the rest of the economy, thereby allowing minimal participation from local citizens in its development.

The poor integration of the oil and gas sector with the wider economy has long been a concern for successive Nigerian Governments.

There is a general understanding that the huge potential of the sector is not being appropriately leveraged and that, as a result, the country is not reaping the associated benefits.

In a bid to change this narrative, Siemens Energy’s is undergoing a commitment towards enhancing the development of the local economy through training, skills development, and investment.

“Our goal at Siemens Energy is to Energize Society. This is more than just the products, services, and solutions we provide; it’s about benefiting and bringing value to the society in which we operate,” Seun Suleiman, Managing Director of Siemens Energy Nigeria said.

He noted that since Siemens Nigeria commissioned its Port Harcourt’s facility in 2016, the company has continued to invest financial, human and technical resources in a bid to expand its capacity and service delivery to clients in the oil and gas and non-oil and gas sectors.

Read also: Transcorp Energy presents alternative energy solution to Nigeria

“We have also recruited and trained more local engineers to effectively operate the workshop and increase the amount of local content. I am extremely proud that this agreement with GIL Automation will add further value to the local economy through skills development, training, and jobs,” Suleiman told Journalists.

Also at the event, Suleiman gave an update on the Siemens power deal as he assured stakeholders the pre-engineering phase of the project would be completed in 10 months.

“We are not adding any generation capacity but we want to make sure that we fix the dilapidated transmission and distribution networks.

“We are doing the pre-engineering for the distribution network of this country. We have already got a letter of credit from the Federal Government to start it.

“The design is done in our head office. For the transmission scope, we were given initially 11 sites; they have added 22 sites.

“Execution is when you go to sites. But in the next three months, we want to start putting the proposal for phase one together, not when we finish the pre-engineering.

“So, if phase one goes into reality before the end of the current administration, it means we would have been able to move from 4,500MW to 7,000MW.”

Responding to the partnership with Siemens to improve local content, Gbolahan Lawal, managing director of GIL Automation said Siemens Energy’s strong commitment to maximizing local content development has been a key factor in our partnership that started in 2008.

“Over the years, we have developed capacities and competencies in panel fabrication, electric motors, electrical & instrumentation and now moving into turbines and compressors. We’re proud to partner with companies that are dedicated to investing in the future of the Nigerian people,” Lawal

said at the event.

For NCDMB’s executive secretary Simbi Wabote, the partnership between Siemens Energy and a local company, Gil Automation, which will involve the transfer of knowledge and technologies will enable local firms like Gil Automation to build capacity to take on more active roles in the industry.

“Looking at the operators in the audience, I implore you all to work with Siemens Energy and Gil Automations so more jobs can be created through this partnership and we can continue to build and upskill local capabilities,” said Simbi Wabote.

Other stakeholders at the event said the agreement affirms Siemens energy’s continued compliance with the Nigerian Oil & Gas Industry Content Development Act.

The agreement was signed at Siemens Energy’s Rotating Equipment Workshop in Port Harcourt, by Seun Suleiman, Managing Director of Siemens Energy Nigeria, and Lawal Gbolahan, Managing Director of GIL Automation, and witnessed by Engr Simbi Wabote, Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).

Since 2016, Siemens Energy’s workshop has contributed towards Nigeria’s long-term developmental goals and localization agenda in the oil & gas sector. Ongoing investment in the facility has expanded its capabilities and provided greater training and skills development opportunities for Nigerians.