Luanda — The Minister of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Diamantino Azevedo, on Thursday in Luanda called for greater participation of Angolan companies in the provision of services to the oil sector.
To this end, the minister, who opened the 3rd workshop on 'Local Content - the foundation for the sustainable growth of the Angolan business community', highlighted the premises created so that companies owned by Angolan citizens could organize themselves technically and financially, as well as be able to participate in tenders for the provision of services and supply of goods of national origin.
He highlighted Presidential Decree No. 271/20 of 20 October, the Local Content Law for the Oil Sector, which is one of the foundations of the Executive's policy to guarantee the participation of Angolan staff and technicians and the insertion of the national business community in the entire value chain of the oil sector.
Diamantino Azevedo said that, over the years, in order to respond to the great dependence on foreign technicians and companies, the Angolan Government has approved several legal Acts, the implementation of which is conventionally called the 'Angolanisation process of the oil sector'.
Local Content, according to the minister, is initially aimed at recruiting, training and developing a national workforce.
"With the development of the national oil industry, moving from oil exploration and production in shallow waters to deeper waters, the technical complexity and knowledge required has increased, leading to the continuous improvement of diplomas on Local Content," he said.
The definition and requirements of Local Content, he said, have been evolving and as a result new legal diplomas have been approved, aiming not only at the insertion of the workforce, but also at the provision of services by local companies.
Local Content is understood to be any and all activities in the oil sector that include the participation of the business community and the national citizen, Angolan companies, as well as the use of goods and services produced in Angola, the recruitment, integration, training and development of the Angolan workforce, in a consistent and sustainable manner.
On the other hand, both operating companies and service providers, according to the assumptions of the Decree, must give priority to contracting local companies for services covered by the exclusivity regime, according to the list released annually by the National Agency of Oil, Gas and Biofuels (ANPG).
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In turn, the ANPG's Local Content Management technician, João Santiago, made it known that the agency has already certified 640 national companies to provide services to the oil sector.
He also indicated that 1,480 other national companies are registered on the agency's portal and are awaiting the process of evaluation and processing of the information received, inspection visit, for subsequent certification.
He added that most of the certified companies are providers of less complex services in the oil sector, which includes administrative support, among others.
On the other hand, the coordinator of the Local Nucleus of the ANPG, Maura Nunes, said that there are Angolan companies capable of providing services to the oil sector, and, in terms of exclusivity, there are five percent of approved contracts and nine percent of goods and services.
"The objective is to increase more Angolan companies in the provision of services in the oil sector, both on a preferential and exclusive basis," he said.
The chairman of the Board of Directors (PCA) of the ANPG, Paulino Jerónimo, said that the 3rd workshop on Local Content aimed to analyze the implementation of the law for the oil sector, listen to entrepreneurs about the challenges, as well as assess the sustainable growth of Angolan companies in the provision of services in the sector.
The event, promoted by the ANPG, was attended by representatives of companies in the oil sector and technicians from the agency. ASS/AC/TED/DOJ
