IMO Level 1 and 2 courses for Qatar Petroleum

Kevin O’Connell and Richard Tatner have concluded a training course in Doha, for staff of Qatar Petroleum. Training and exercises were carried out over a two week period to equip staff of Qatar Petroleum with the knowledge on how to meet the challenges of being a company committed to effective oil spill preparedness. The courses were a first in a series of First Responder (IMO level 1) and On-scene Commander (IMO Level 2) courses that the Oil Spill Training Company has been contracted to deliver. To maximise Qatar Petroleum’s preparedness commitment, the course was delivered ahead of the 15th Asian Games 2006 hosted by the State of Qatar.

Qatar Petroleum has shown their commitment to oil spill response preparedness by investing in new equipment and staff training and development. Attendees included personnel from offshore and on-shore production, safety and port departments. They were introduced to the newly implemented State of Qatar National Oil Spill Contingency Plan, site specific plans for onshore and offshore locations and the oil spill sensitivity maps developed for the whole State of Qatar coastline.

Both levels of courses were designed to maximise delegate participation and interaction by using a combination of instructor led classroom training and practical group exercises to put their newly acquired knowledge to use. Such was the success of the course that two first responder training courses were held. To enforce the company’s oil spill preparedness intentions and the importance of training, the closing ceremony of each course was chaired by Ali Ashkanami, whose message talked of co-operation, closer working relationships, improving communications, harmonising preparedness across the different departments and continued trainings.