JOHOR BARU: The Pengerang Integrated Petroleum Complex (PIPC) project is expected to provide many job opportunities for skilled workers in the downstream oil and gas (O&G) industry.
State Unity and Human Resources Executive Committee chairman R Vidyananthan said the people of Johor must therefore be ready to grab the opportunities by training for the required skills.
"The PIPC project is set to move into the operational phase soon, and we need to make sure that the necessary workforce is in place," said Vidyananthan.
He said that the state government wants to encourage locals to equip themselves with the necessary skills so that they would not be left behind when opportunities arise.
"We do not want to recruit people from other states to fulfil the requirements of the industry," he added.
He was speaking to the media after witnessing an exchange of Memoranda of Agreements (MoA) between Johor Petroleum Development Corporation Bhd and the Pasir Gudang Industrial Training Institute, the Johor Skills Development Centre and Kumpulan Pendidikan YPJ.
Present was JPDC deputy chief executive officer Izhar HIfney Ismail.
During the ceremony, JPDC was represented by Izhar, the training institute by its director Sarman Rawan, Johor Skills by its managing director Ja'apar Samat and KPYPJ by its chief executive officer Abdul Rashid A Rahman.
Izhar said the operational phase of the PIPC project is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2019 with the opening of the Petronas refinery.
“When the refinery open, a total of 4,600 skilled workers would be required. By 2032, when the PIPC project is expected to be completed, a total of 27,000 skilled workers would be needed there,” said Izhar.
On the MoA, Izhar said this is the second time JPDC has signed agreements with similar skills training institutes, having already signed agreements with Institut Kemahiran Belia Bandar Penawar, Kolej Komuniti Bandar Penawar and the German-Malaysia Institute last year.
“We aim to train 300 skilled workers through these institutions. So far, we have trained 100 skilled workers through this programme,” said Izhar.