06 August 2018
Petrofac and Sultan Qaboos University support Engineering students in Oman
Petrofac and the Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) have signed an agreement to support students starting postgraduate programmes this year.
Three Omani students enrolled for MSc programmes in the mechanical engineering, chemical and process engineering, and civil engineering faculties of the University’s College of Engineering will be sponsored, invited to industry conferences and given financial support for research.
The agreement was signed by Dr Rahma al Mahrooqi, Deputy Vice Chancellor for Postgraduate Studies and Research at SQU, and Ray Richardson, Country Manager, Petrofac Oman.
Education is a key focus area of Petrofac’s social investment as it links to our training and skills development and aligns with our expanding requirements for talented engineers in Oman. To help develop local skills sets, Petrofac’s newest technical training centre, with JV partner Takatuf, opened its doors in Muscat earlier this year. This will also help to provide a steady stream of job-ready graduates and can also upskill existing field personnel.
Ray Richardson said: “We welcome this further step in the long-standing relationship between Sultan Qaboos University and Petrofac. Many high quality graduate engineers from the University have developed successful careers with us.
“Petrofac is currently executing number of high value projects here in the Sultanate and we have a growing office in Muscat, so it is in our interest to encourage more people to take up engineering as a career. We look forward to further opportunities wherein the synergies of close academia and industry cooperation can be realised.”
Prof Abdulla Ambusaidi, Dean of Postgraduate Studies at SQU, commented: “We aspire to foster collaboration opportunities that serve the parties concerned including our students, the university and find external funding opportunities for postgraduate students. We also encourage the private and public sectors to take the initiatives to support research activities.”