TERepublic November Issue 2021

AFRICAN ENERGY STORIES
"We are also doing business in storage
terminal where we are looking for Joint
Venture partnership.
"We are also involved in downstream bulk
trading and UNOC has an operator interest
of 100%".
Jessica stressed that UNOC has developed
a National Content Strategy with Six Pillars
which comprises the Recruitment of
U g a n d a n s ; S u p p l i e r C a p a c i t y
D e v e l o p m e n t ; N a t i o n a l S k i l l s
Development; Supplier Selection;
Operation Services Capacity; Operatorship
Capacity.
She explained that UNOC is focused on
recruiting Ugandans which has enabled
the company to employ Ugandans living in
the Diaspora who are working in other
countries in the Middle East, United States,
UK, and Asia.
She confirmed that some of the Ugandans
living in the Diaspora have returned to the
country to support the development of
UNOC.
"Presently, we are 100% Ugandans. But,
we will get more expatriates for gender
diversity and inclusion.
"We have a target of employing 70%
Ugandans and 30% internationals. We
need the internationals as Uganda is a
nascent oil and gas country and we do not
have enough professionals.
"For the second pillar on Supplier Capacity
Development, this is where we are facilitating
growth and capacity building on core financial
and HSE development of national providers.
"We will carry out some supplier development
workshops. We are planning to take some of our
suppliers to Nigeria to gain more experience
and understand the supplier's business
activities.
"We have also entered MOUs with Stanbic Bank
to support suppliers and UNOC is a major player
in that aspect.
"We are entering into various partnerships so
that when the need arises for training, UNOC
will get into that training space.
"We are also working on national skills
development and this is where we are
developing the skills of Ugandans. We do formal
training in oil and gas, as we attend conferences
and other event activities.
"We are going to place our staffs to work with
IOCs operating in Uganda and other players
such as EPC contractors.
"We are benchmarking our operation
internationally to gain the necessary skills.
"For Procurement, we give preference to
Uganda companies. We are also working on
making sure our suppliers aren't just focusing
on the Uganda market but they can be able to
supply internationally".
Speaking about the Operatorship Capacity, she
said UNOC will get some exploration licenses, as it
has identified the blocks and once they have been
able to get it, UNOC will look for Joint Ventures
partners.
Uganda National Oil Company Limited (UNOC) is a
limited liability company wholly owned by the
Government of Uganda. The company's overall
function is to handle the Government of Uganda’s
commercial interests in the petroleum sector and
to ensure that the resource is exploited in a
sustainable manner.
UNOC is also mandated to investigate and propose
new upstream, midstream, and downstream
ventures initially locally and eventually
internationally.
UNOC's mission is to drive sustainable growth of
the oil and gas sector through strategic
p a r t n e rs h i p s a n d c h a m p i o n n a t i o n a l
participation. It goals are organized under three
main strategic themes i.e. Invest in People,
Partner Strategically and Build the Business.
20 22
OIL AND GAS REPUBLIC I SPECIAL EDITION