PARAMARIBO, SURINAME – TotalEnergies is sending Surinamese engineers overseas to gain hands-on experience ahead of first oil from the GranMorgu development, according to Artur Nunes da Silva, General Manager of TotalEnergies Suriname.
Speaking on day two of the Suriname Energy, Oil and Gas Summit (SEOGS), Nunes da Silva said the company is preparing local talent for operations by exposing them to producing assets and experienced teams before startup. GranMorgu, being developed by TotalEnergies, APA Corporation and Staatsolie in Block 58, is expected to become Suriname’s first major offshore oil project.
Nunes da Silva said some of the company’s first field operations engineers are already undergoing training abroad.
“What we are trying to do [is] to make sure that these engineers are up-to-date and are ready to go when first oil comes. So they are traveling,” he said.
He noted that one engineer is currently in Brazil while another has been sent to Angola.
“They are experienced, they are working on a FPSO [floating production storage offloading vessel], they are working with the teams in the offices to make sure that they know what it looks like,” he shared.
The TotalEnergies executive said women make up much of the engineering talent being brought into the project. “In Suriname, for those that have problems in diversity in other countries, come here, you only will have women as engineers, and they are all women,” he remarked.
Nunes da Silva said the company is working to ensure local content extends beyond contracts and spending by building operational capability ahead of production.
He stressed that continued investment in education and capability development will be necessary as the industry grows.
“Of course, we have to now, all together, invest in education, invest in the capabilities, to develop that, especially now,” Nunes da Silva said.
