Al Rumhy to inaugurate Oil & Gas West Asia today

The OGWA Exhibition will feature over 150 companies from all over the world and will display the latest products and technologies for the region's oil and gas industry. The parallel OGWA Conference, which will be held at the Golden Tulip Hotel, will be participated in by industry professionals and will discuss important issues and technical challenges faced by the industry.

"OGWA is Oman's version of the major shows that are regularly held worldwide to highlight recent developments as well as the future prospects in the industry,"

said C.J. Paul, general manager of Omanexpo LLC, the leading exhibition organiser in the sultanate.

Paul pointed out that the biennial event, which was started in 1998, has grown by over 20 percent this year as a result largely of the greater interest given by international oil and gas firms to Oman as a major market for their products and services. He explained that the increase in exploration activities in the sultanate and the ongoing efforts to boost production levels offer numerous opportunities to companies directly serving the industry.

Now on its 5th edition, Oil & Gas West Asia is held under the patronage of the Ministry of Oil and Gas and supported by the majority state-owned Petroleum Development Oman (PDO). It is co-sponsored by Oman LNG, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), and the Geological Society of Oman.

Apart from PDO and Oman LNG, many other local companies are expected to have a strong presence at the exhibition with the participation of major firms including Occidental of Oman, Dalma Energy & Co. LLC, MB Petroleum Services, Oman Refinery Company, Oman Oilfields Supply Center, Consolidated Contractors Company, OHI Petroleum & Energy Services, and Oman Oil Industry Supplies & Services, and Universal Engineering Services.

Prominent stalls have also been built by ADNOC and other international oil & gas firms such as Dolphin Energy, Halliburton Worldwide, Schlumberger, Petrofac International, Total S.A., Reliance Industries, Tatneft Gulf, China National Petroleum Corporation, and Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation. According to Paul, the international exhibitors come not only from within the region, particularly the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, but also from India, China, Malaysia, Europe, Jordan, Singapore and the U.S.

Paul stressed that the OGWA Exhibition gives specifiers, engineers and purchasing managers an excellent opportunity to inspect a wide range of products required in their operations. Among those to be displayed are various types of pipes, specialized coatings, compressors and turbines, control systems and integrated solutions, drilling equipment, pressure vessels, gauges and valves as well as safety equipment and pumps.

Meanwhile, the OGWA Conference—dubbed the Middle East Energy Forum--will primarily discuss upstream and downstream technologies as well as the major opportunities in the region for the world's oil and gas companies. The international conference will also tackle the challenges currently facing the industry, the strategies being implemented in the region, and environmental considerations in exploration and production activities. A field trip, organized by the Geological Society of Oman (GSO), is also in the schedule to familiarize conference delegates with Muscat's unique geology.

His Excellency Dr. Mohammed bin Hamad bin Saif Al Rumhy, Minister of Oil & Gas, will deliver the introductory address on the first day of conference. A keynote address will then be given by PDO Managing Director John Malcolm, Dolphin Energy CEO Ahmad Ali Al Sayegh, and Occidental of Oman General Manager Glenn Vangolenn. The distinguished group of speakers who will present papers at the conference is made up of experts from PDO, Oman LNG, Daleel Petroleum, IHS Energy, Wood Mackenzie, Oman Gas Company, and Schlumberger Oman.

Both the OGWA Exhibiton and Conference have garnered the support of numerous industry publications and other media organizations with Pipeline as the official magazine. The media partners are Arab Oil & Gas Magazine, Upstream, Oil & Gas Middle East, Data Media Systems, Oman Economic Review and the Oman Daily Observer and Arabic Daily Oman.