Takatuf Oman’s training institutes to open this year

MUSCAT: Oman’s much-awaited two technical training institutes of Takatuf Oman are ready to open in as early as November this year, officials said.

The institutes will cater to high school or engineering diploma holders and engineers, and enhance their technical ability and reduce the gap between academic and practical expertise prevalent among graduates through tailor made courses for Omani industries.

“It is promising to see Oman’s private sector stepping up to help our secondary school and university graduates realising their professional potential in the field of technical engineering,” Salim Al Awfi, undersecretary of Ministry of Oil and Gas, said.

“It is definitely going to increase the Omanisation rate in the technical sectors as the expertise gap will close through the courses offered.”

Takatuf Petrofac Oman (TPO) will cater to diploma holders through its two-year National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) programme. The programme in its foundation year will focus on developing soft skills, such as English language and mathematics abilities. The second year graduates will witness hands on modules to develop practical expertise.

Oman Institute for Oil and Gas (instOG) is a more focused oil and gas training ground for graduate engineers, who have been offered jobs in different oil and gas companies in the Sultanate. Located in Innovation Park Muscat (IPM), curriculum for this is designed and customised in collaboration with Next—a Schlumberger training provider—and with Oman’s key oil production companies.

“We have a capacity to train 300 graduates at a time. Our aim is to train at least 300 Omanis every year with a gradual increase in numbers over the year,” Mohsin Al Hadhrami, managing director at Schlumberger, said.

Focus on energy sector

“The institutes will be serving the energy sector mainly and at a later stage as demand for renewable energy comes in, we will be training Omanis for technical aspects of renewable energy too,” Ibrahim Al Harthy, managing director of Takatuf Oman, said.

TPO and intOG are equipped to increase capacity in the future. Facilities at TPO include four live training plants, integrated simulation platforms and workshops for each discipline.

InstOG, with its advanced courses for both graduates and mid-level professionals, will house latest technology simulators and integrated simulation platforms.