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New batch of UAE student graduate from Total ABK VEDC Academy

ABU DHABI - Total Abu Al Bukhoosh academy and the Vocational Education Development Centre (VEDC) celebrated the graduation of a new batch of Emirati students who are now qualified to join jobs in the emirate’s oil and gas industry.

In a speech during the ceremony at the academy in Shahama, Total Abu Al Bukhosh General Manager Amer Al Shaikh Ali said the company is proud to celebrate the graduation of a new batch of Emiratis specialized in oil and gas engineering.

“These UAE students have spent two and a half years at the academy to specialize in various fields to join their Emirati colleagues already working in this vital sector we have great success stories to be told by these people who have received their studies at the Total Abu Al Bukhoosh academy and become qualified to get high posts and jobs in their country,” Al Shaikh said.

Al Shaikh Ali lauded the close cooperation with the Supreme Petroleum Council (SPC) and ADNOC and their support to enable the UAE students to study at the academy to serve their country and community by working at Total Abu Al Bukhoosh, Abu Dhabi Oil Company Limited (Japan), Bunduq Company Limited and the Abu Dhabi Marine Operations Company (ADMA-OPCO).

He said the UAE, under the leadership of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan has provided the best education and training opportunities for its people so they can contribute activity to socio-economic development. He also hailed the recent visit by foreign minister HH Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan to Total Abu Al Bukhoosh field, where he met workers and trainees.

The new batch included 12 national graduates in various oil and gas fields of specialization.

The Academy’s manager Jean-Marc Aldebert said the new graduates would be able to work as experts and technicians in Abu Dhabi’s hydrocarbon sector, adding that Total uses its long experience in providing education and training to Emiratis as well as good salaries and health insurance for all trainees.

The ceremony was also attended by VEDC general manager Hassan Ibrahim al Hammadi, Total UAE President Jean-Luc Guiziou, Total Representative in the UAE and Chairman of Total Abu Al Bukhoosh Philippe Roy, Total UAE Vice President for Institutional Development Sultan Al Hajji, Head of the support services at VEDC Abdul Rahman Al Hammadi, VEDC director Dr Khudair Al Obaidi and other officials and executives from national oil companies.

Al Hajji commended the academy’s role in developing national human resources to work in Abu Dhabi’s oil and gas sector, adding that Total Abu Al Bukhoosh launched an initiative to set up that institution in April 2008 to fulfill the emirate’s ambitions to train Emiratis in such a vital field.

He paid tributes in this respect to Abu Dhabi’s crown prince and deputy supreme commander of the UAE armed forces HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan.

Al Hajji also cited the efforts exerted by ADNOC to qualify national cadres in this sector under the directives of the UAE’s wise leadership.

He noted that the academy’s strategy is intended to achieve Abu Dhabi’s ambitions and aspirations within its Vision 2030.

He said the curriculum at the academy is divided into two parts, including a one-year academic programme and a 1.5-year training programme. The training course comprises three main parts extending for three weeks each. The first course involves theoretical training while the second includes practical training at oil and gas fields. The third includes a three-week break, he said, adding that each course involves a weekly test for students to evaluate their performance.

“The academy is in the process of implementing an ambitious plan for its students involving supporting them and sending them on scholarships to complete their studies and training the academy also helps its graduates get jobs at various oil and gas institutions in the emirate,” he added.