Maritime training for a transitioning energy industry

Angola

Wiky Tabita, general manager of Centro de Formação Maritima de Angola (CFMA), talks to The Energy Year about the company’s main undertakings since 2022 and its Cacuaco training centre. CFMA is dedicated to training and skills development in the areas of maritime safety, oil and gas and management.

Considering the transition the energy industry is experiencing, in which direction is the training segment heading in Angola?
Training is a segment in constant movement. On the one hand, given the ongoing energy transition, we are building solar panels and batteries and exploring opportunities in renewables, such as green hydrogen and ammonia. On the other, we are building refineries, bringing in new FPSOs and drilling exploration wells because they are all strategic elements for our country.
The bottom line here is that we need to start developing the advanced skills that the evolution of the energy industry requires. We must prepare and train a workforce that is able to operate the new technology and equipment. In other words, we need to provide training that will allow Angolans to take control of what is new in the industry and progressively change in mindset.
Investment needs to be taken, not only in the new technology but as well as to train the trainers. We have partnered with a highly reputable institute, ITE Education services of Singapore, to deliver a globally recognised pedagogy specialist certification programme that can help build a solid base for energy transition.

Can you walk us through the main undertakings CFMA has been focusing on since the last time we met in 2022?
In the last 12 months, our main focus was to obtain the STCW [Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping] certification for maritime training facilities and to comply with industry norms and procedures. We managed to successfully obtain the ISO 9000 in August 2023, and now we are looking at another required certification, the OPITO certification, which we are aiming to have by the end of 2023.
There are many ongoing activities within the domestic oil and gas sector, with a significant number of projects in the pipeline as well – for example, exploration and development wells, new refineries and onshore wells. This means our workforce must comply with international standards, and obtaining OPITO certification will position CFMA as an authorised training centre in line with the norms and best quality standards of the industry.
Obtaining the OPITO certification will also benefit the country, as it represents an important opportunity for young local workers to sharpen their skills and to work either in Angola or in other countries in Africa or in Europe or the US. This will also improve Angola’s oil and gas industry with respect to the competition it faces from countries such as Nigeria and Ghana.

Regarding the development of CFMA infrastructure, what are the most significant updates you can share with us?
We have started the revamping of the Cacuaco training centre. Our aim is to have construction completed by March 2024, with an investment of around USD 2 million for the first phase and an investment of approximately USD 5 million for a second phase.
The centre has a new module for safe driving certification, which we identify as particularly important given that the second-leading cause of death in Angola is car accidents, with many cases involving trucks transporting fuel, diesel and gasoline throughout the whole country.
CFMA will play a role in tackling this issue by training people and providing certifications first and foremost to truck drivers. Furthermore, this new programme will be in line with the new laws implemented by the government regarding safe driving, a practice that CFMA can definitely contribute to via training, as evidenced by our experience at our Cacuaco training centre.
Finally, we had a high-level delegation visiting the training centre – at the ministerial level and Sonangol board members – who gave us very specific guidelines regarding additional investments needed to equip the centre with workshops for vocational training to upskill and transform (for example, in training to become mechanics or electricians). We will add TVET [technical and vocational education and training].
For the Sumbe training centre, we will begin installing the new HUET [helicopter underwater escape training] module, the new bridge simulator and the engine room simulator and begin focusing on delivering the maritime training.

What are the key pillars of your strategy for stepping up your client base both domestically and regionally?
The first pillar is international certification. The second is a marketing and commercial strategy that can make us known beyond our national borders and highlight our capabilities and first-class facilities. As part of our strategy, we want to penetrate the regional market by targeting countries such as Mozambique and Namibia.
This year we were visited by the deputy minister of oil and gas of Namibia, to whom we showed our training centre in Sumbe. We shared with him our vision for the next five years and received very good feedback and a high level of interest in some of our training programmes.
Thirdly, we have to always stay ahead of the curve to understand and accommodate the needs of the oil and gas industry to ensure that we are ready to cover all upcoming projects that will require our training courses. Angola registered very few accidents in offshore operations in recent years, and this is in part thanks to the very experienced staff that deliver the safety training such as the BST package, advanced fire fight and PSSR training.

What is your assessment of the current local content regulations and their impact on your business activities?
Our government is committed to enforcing the new local content laws and regulations by promoting a platform of constant dialogue with all stakeholders in the process to empower Angolan companies to upskill and become competitive and deliver solutions from A to Z to our industry. However, within our portfolio, most of the companies providing services are local content companies. The impact is that most of the services companies are using our training centre as a local solution for training; this can bring more autonomy for the company to train in Angola with CFMA.

What opportunities do you see ahead for Angola within the region with respect to training services, and what is your strategy for positioning CFMA as a leader in the training sector?
In terms of capacity, Angola is well positioned to be a training hub for the region. The country has the right expertise to meet demand from countries such as Namibia, Mozambique and South Africa and offer the same quality services more efficiently in terms of time required and cost.
Following the beginning of our collaboration with Namibia, we launched midterm courses to introduce the basics of the oil and gas industry to newcomers, with the aim of helping university graduates to access work more easily and to provide them with a first smattering of the technical skills they need to learn to be top-notch.
There is already an MoU underway, It covers safety procedures and basic oil and gas subjects (for example, introduction to EPSA agreements, contract awarding and facility management).

How important are international partnerships for the growth of the company?
I strongly believe in industry collaboration, and international partnerships represent key opportunities to enhance learning, knowledge transfer and business growth.
An example of a fruitful collaboration is the one we have with IHRDC from Boston. We are jointly implementing the CMS [competency management system], e-learning and virtual mentoring learning courses for energy transition with high quality standards.
We also partner with maritime institutions for training solutions to delivery programmes for STCW courses, nautical studies and cadets. Our partnership with City of Glasgow college and Escola Superior Náutica Infante Dom Henrique will add value to the CFMA portfolio and aid company growth in the maritime segment.

Where do you see CFMA in the near future?
We see a lot of room for growth for our business. As long as there is oil and gas in the country, training will be needed. And, with all transformations and reforms that the country is going through, and adding the fact that the majority of the population is at a young age, we foresee that training and education will be key to help boost the economy of Angola.
More specifically, in terms of initiatives we will be focused on implementing the maritime programme to answer the needs of the sector, we will keep delivering the TVT and safety training in our training centre in Luanda, and finalising our revamp project of the facilities in Cacuaco centre.
Then, the goal for 2024 is to reach 14,000 trainees per year, up from the current 9,000. With the implementation of these new programmes, new partnership and new accreditations it will be possible to achieve remarkable results and improve the quality of our training programme in line with international standards such as OPITO, SQA, STCW and IMO.
Finally, in the next five years with the full support of all key stakeholders such as the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Petroleum and Gas (MIREMPET), Sonangol, the ANPG [National Oil, Gas and Biofuels Agency], IOCs and services companies, we are able embrace together the CFMA strategy to become worldwide training institutions to serve Angolans and the region with high standards and quality.

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