SBM Offshore committed to developing local content in Guyana

In the midst of the large-scale development stemming from the oil and gas sector, the government has taken steps to ensure that Guyanese and Guyanese-owned companies benefit from investments and other opportunities.

The Local Content Act is one example of this commitment and ensures that contractors include locals in their development projects.

One such contractor is SBM Offshore Guyana, which highlighted its procurement and compliance policies, and requirements during a vendor forum at the International Energy Conference and Expo on Friday.

SBM Offshore is the builder of Guyana’s floating, production, storage and offloading vessels operating in the Stabroek Block.

The company was the first major Exxon contractor to receive approval for its local content master plan.

This was in early September of 2022, following the modification of payment terms for the Local Content Secretariat. This modification allows for contractors and sub-contractors operating in the nation’s petroleum sector to issue payments to Guyanese suppliers within 30 to 45 days following the receipt of a correct invoice.

Providing an overview of the company’s local content development agenda, General Manager, Martin Cheong, highlighted a number of initiatives aimed at fostering sustainable development throughout Guyana.

The Green Farm initiative is how the company lends support to Guyana’s Plympton Farms along the Soesdyke/Linden highway.

It allows the company to reduce its dependence on imports by utilising local operations to supply food to persons working aboard the FPSOs. This goes hand in hand with the company’s investments in the Hubu Aquafarm, based in Region Three, which supplies shrimp and prawns to FPSOs in the Stabroek Block.

Another initiative is the Enhancing Livelihoods Youth Literacy Project, which is a collaboration between SBM Offshore and the National Coordinating Coalition Incorporated, and targets youths in the Sophia/Cummings Lodge area between the ages of seven and 25.

The programme offers paid mentorship, tutorship opportunities and educational materials.

“These projects are all aimed at contributing to the educational, sustainable and economic development of Guyana.

“We believe that this engagement provides a unique platform for productive conversation and opportunities for the businesses present. We are keen on building the capacity of Guyanese businesses to meet the growing needs of the oil and gas industry and more so our operation as we expand our footprint in Guyana,” he noted.

Cheong, who is the first Guyanese to hold a position in this capacity at the company, said these initiatives represent the company’s agenda of merging local content development with their efforts at achieving sustainable development goals.

Further, he noted that some 60 per cent of the SBM Offshore workforce are locals, in keeping with the government’s local content act. On the combinative onshore and offshore front, he said  approximately 40-45 per cent of the workforce is local.

He added that a sizeable portion of the vendors the company seeks out are local.

Supply Chain Support Manager, Flavia Werneck, explained that the company’s commitment to local content development extends into the educational arena, as the company works to ensure that their local vendors are qualified and regularly upskilled to improve the quality and safety of the operations.