KK inks lucrative deal for training oil rig site workers

KK Oil and Gas, a subsidiary of the security services company KK Group, has signed a deal with a Canadian firm to train Kenyans seeking employment in the nascent oil exploration industry.

The firm has invested in a Sh200 million training facility in Westlands, Nairobi, that will offer the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) Rig Pass, a mandatory requirement for all workers seeking access to oil drilling sites regardless of their other qualifications.

“You cannot enter a site if you do not have a Rig Pass,” said KK Oil and Gas director Bill Lay Wednesday.

A lack of rig passes means that foreign workers or Kenyans who have worked abroad have an advantage over their local counterparts even in cases where the job is simple and the courses to be offered at the KK facility are expected to bridge this gap, added Mr Lay.

Insurance companies also require oil contractors to put in place tough safety standards such as making it a requirement for crews to have a Rig Pass.

KK has been accredited by IADC, an agency that sets safety standards for oil-and-gas and geothermal drilling contractors, to issue passes needed to access exploration sites.

Demand for skilled labour at Kenya’s oil exploration sites is expected to surge as more firms begin to drill which has been catalysed by the series of successful finds by UK-based Tullow Oil.

KK Group is already contracted by Tullow to provide security at the drilling sites and train workers for the explorer.

Currently, it has around 450 personnel in Turkana County where most of Tullow’s exploration activities have been concentrated.

KK Oil and Gas signed a deal with LearnCorp, a subsidiary company of the Cape Breton University Foundation of Canada, which offers technical courses for oil and gas contractors.

“We will utilise our industry expertise to work with KK and monitor developments in East Africa to ensure the right training is delivered at the right time to match the pace of sector development,” said LearnCorp president Lucia Maclsaac last week.

The KK training facility will also offer other safety courses.

KK Security revenues account for 60 per cent of the firm’s total income and KK Oil and Gas is expected to halve this share to about 30 per cent in the mid-term by diversifying revenue streams.

Tullow Oil has said that it plans to drill 40 wells in the next two years which has given confidence to other explorers to begin drilling.

Canadian explorer Taipan Resources is expected to drill a well in Mandera by the end of September. Pancontinental Oil and Gas, an Australian explorer is drilling a well on the Lamu Block.

READ: Canadian firm raises Mandera oil projections

FAR, another Australian gas and oil company has said that it would drill its first well in June 2015 while EHRC Energy, an American company, contracted a BGP Group to survey its northern Kenya exploration block to identify the best drilling spots and has set aside $40 million (Sh3.4 billion) for the venture.

Camac, a Houston-based explorer, is also carrying out seismic work which is a precursor to drilling.

Local firms have also begun positioning themselves ahead of the work expected once firms start to drill.

Listed firm TransCentury through its subsidiary Civicon, is another Tullow contractor that builds access roads to exploration sites and other supporting infrastructure. Tullow has renewed Civicon’s contract for another two years.

Demand for KK’s training services is also expected to come from the power sector as the country steps up drilling of geothermal wells.