Services Pétroliers Schlumberger (SLB), a globally recognised oilfield services giant listed on the stock exchanges in New York, Paris, and London, plans to employ 22 people on its planed Liquid Mud Plant (LMP) at Berth 8, situated within the Port of Walvis Bay.
The company is in the early stages of proposing the construction and operation of the plant at Berth 8, situated within the Port of Walvis Bay, managed by the Namibian Ports Authority (Namport).
According to a project update that was released this week currently eleven employees are in service of SLB at the Port of Walvis Bay.
Employees of SLB will construct the LMP. Welders from an appointed contractor will be used for the fabrication of the pipework.
“The workforce will be increased to 22 when the LMP is added to the current operations of SLB. SLB intends to have at least 70% of all positions filled by Namibians eventually,” the company said.
The Liquid Mud Plant is a pivotal component in the management of various drilling fluids utilised in offshore oil rig operations. SLB envisions the LMP as a facility designed to receive, manipulate, produce, blend, store, and transfer the drilling compounds crucial for offshore oil rigs.
The core operation of the LMP involves the mixing of wet constituents on-site, storage, and eventual transfer onto a supply vessel. This vessel will subsequently transport the vital drilling compounds to oil rigs engaged in offshore drilling activities along the Namibian coast.
In adherence to environmental regulations, SLB has initiated the process to secure environmental clearance from the Directorate of Environmental Affairs (DEA) under the Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism. This clearance is contingent upon an approved environmental impact assessment (EIA) as stipulated by the Environmental Management Act.
SLB approached Namport in 2022 and asked for permission to make use of the Port of Walvis Bay as the Namibian base to operate from. Namport granted permission to SLB to lease an area at Berth 8, including an existing Namport rubbhall warehouse.
