Adam Cheesman is marking one year since moving to Perth in Australia permanently from the UK. As Operations Director he was tasked with growing our business in the region.

“I was sitting in Aberdeen 18 months ago, finalising the strategy for the market entry of our Operations business and growth of the overall business,” he recalls. “To be sat here now and looking back over the past year, we have achieved what we set out to do despite the challenges that Covid-19 has thrown at us.

“We now have a stronger business after putting the foundations for growth in place, we‘ve increased our brand recognition, we have a team that is growing to meet the demands of the new work we have secured. We’re on the right path.”

THERE’S OPPORTUNITIES APLENTY IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND, AND WE’RE WELL PLACED TO SEIZE THEM – AS OPERATIONS DIRECTOR ADAM CHEESMAN AND REGIONAL DIRECTOR JOSIE PHILIPS EXPLAIN

Keeping projects on schedule over the last two years has been understandably difficult. Yet that’s exactly what the Tinrhert team has done. With 98% of the construction completed, the project is now on the home straight and fast approaching a major milestone: first gas.

Of course, COVID has not been the only challenge. Add to the mix a remote working environment, a complex brownfield site, and even sandstorms. Our Petrofac colleagues reflect on the journey so far, and the hard work that has led to this point.

20 years of experience

It’s been more than two decades since we first began working in Algeria and our business has gone from strength to strength. We had already worked for Sonatrach  starting with the Ohanet, ISG Compression, Elmerk, ISG-2, Alrar and Reggane projects, before winning the US$600 million EPC contract for Tinrhert four years ago.

Indeed, Petrofac was involved in delivering the existing Central Processing Facility for the Tinrhert gas field in 2002, which is located in Ohanet, 1,500km southeast of Algiers.

The scope of work now includes a new inlet separation and compression centre, extending the existing CPF. The centre will remove CO2 and mercury from the field’s gas reserves, so the gas is within spec for the global market. The second part of the project involves constructing a pipeline network of approximately 400km to connect 36 new wells, along with commissioning, start-up and performance testing of facilities.

“It’s not a big project but it’s become a role model for Petrofac projects in Algeria – it’s stayed on schedule despite many challenges and the client has been very pleased with the standard of construction and safety onsite,” says Construction Manager, Antoine Eid, who began working on the project in 2020.

A mental toughness

Antoine says that the main challenges on the project have stemmed from the environment in which they are operating. The site in the Sahara Desert is extremely remote and personnel often need to travel there by chartered flight. It can take days.

“Add to that the harsh weather,” says Antoine. “Sandstorms often stop work on the site as it’s not safe for employees and the airstrip can’t function. Winds can reach 45 km per hour with visibility at only five metres. It’s so unpredictable.”

Like many of our other projects, Tinrhert wasn’t immune to the fallout from the pandemic. Algerian airspace was closed for months and many of the workforce were “stuck” on site.
“Many people were afraid they wouldn’t get home to see their families; I was here for ten months,” reflects Antoine. “But we never stopped work on the project. People really took on the challenge and responsibility, and thought we have to prove ourselves as Petrofac employees. That’s the mentality of the people here. They still performed despite being unable to leave the site for months.”

Of course, teamwork is evident across all our projects; however, the strong bond between the Tinrhert team is something Antoine hasn’t seen on many others. “We live together, we socialise together, we cook together. We are one team,” he says. “Our teamwork has been a major success.”

Bringing together the old and new

An interesting perspective on the project comes from Amine Benkara Mostefa. He only joined Petrofac in March as Tinrhert’s new Site Manager and was impressed with what he saw. “The teams are all very motivated, welfare is fantastic, and management is very helpful,” he comments.

Amine has 27 years of experience in the energy industry in Algeria and knows the client very well having worked on previous projects with Sonatrach. “I have to ensure that the remaining works are ongoing safely, as per our schedule,” he says. “I also meet with contractors and support all the teams to make sure nothing halts progress.

“As the site comes online, there is higher potential for risk of incidents. For instance, we are implementing a plan for traffic onsite to avoid any incidents with electrical devices.

”Overseeing health and safety is Rommel Tuazon, HSE Manager, who has worked in Algeria for Petrofac for 14 years. He leads a team of 20, including the onsite medical team, and describes himself as one of the first and last HSE personnel on the project site – to mobilise on the project site to establish the temporary facilities in terms of safety and part of the last PIUL team in the last phase of the project after completion.

“I have one goal – to educate all our workforce on the safe execution of projects in line with Petrofac’s Health and Safety procedures. The people here on site become your family,” he says. “Each department helps each other, and we solve problems together.”

As Amine said, the site is now coming to life and part of this is bringing together the new and existing facilities. Commissioning Manager Elie Abdallah Khalaf, who joined Petrofac as a graduate mechanical engineer in 2009, tells us more: “I oversee a team of 70 and I’ve also put together the systems for handover to the client.

“The next stage is challenging as we are tying up two different systems together in the new and existing facilities. The first milestone is shifting from temporary to permanent power supplied from existing facilities. Next month, we’ll take gas from the existing plant in order to start the new separation and boosting facilities in a sequential manner. The third milestone will be taking gas from the new wellheads and treating it by decreasing the CO2 and mercury content. The performance tests of the entire facility will be our final target, before the warranty period.”

Growing our business in Algeria

The project is due for completion by the end of September, with full start up by the end of August.

There has been little movement on new projects in Algeria because of the pandemic, but with COVID restrictions now easing, the Petrofac team is confident that there are new opportunities on the horizon.

“The completion of the Tinrhert project builds a positive reputation for the company in Algeria and globally,” says Project Director, Rabih Lahoud. “What greatly differentiates Petrofac is the commitment of the people and the high-quality of the work performed.”

As for the team, they will be sad to part ways after working together through such challenging circumstances. “It’s strange when projects come to an end and people are reassigned and demobilised, and you don’t know when or if you will see them again,” says Rommel. “We are a family.”

TINRHERT in pictures

Like many of our other projects, In-Country Value (ICV) has played an important role on Tinrhert. Around 80% of the project’s workforce are Algerian, and many are from the local province. They have been appointed across all levels onsite and include key people like the site’s security manager, Yagoub Mohamed.

Amine, who is from Algiers, says that working with foreign companies in the Sahara is very good for their CVs. “I’ve always respected Petrofac; the company offers a very good package and conditions for Algerians,” he says.

Petrofac has also made a number of donations to the local community. In 2020, we provided essential medical equipment, including defibrillators, to the nearby In Amenas hospital. We also distributed backpacks, books, and stationery supplies to more than 100 children at the Ebn Badiss Elementary School and Zgouni Ali Complementary School, in Ohanet. More recently, the team donated food to the local community for Ramadan.

KEEPING IT LOCAL

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