Oil and gas professionals convened at the SPE Middle East Health, Safety, Security and Environment Conference and Exhibition (MEHSSE) today to address the latest in Health, Safety, Security and Environment sector of the oil and gas industry
H.E Dr. Abdul-Hussain bin Ali Mirza, Minister of Oil and Gas Affairs has officially inaugurated the fifth regional SPE Middle East Health, Safety, Security and Environment Conference and Exhibition (MEHSSE) taking place in Bahrain until 6 October. His Excellency was accompanied by other dignitaries and VIPs including Ali Al Jarwan, Chief Executive Officer, ADMA-OPCO, Faisal Al Mahroos, Chief Executive Officer, BAPCO, Alain Labastie, SPE 2011 President, Hosnia Hashim, SPE Regional Director and Waleed Refaay, Managing Director SPE Middle East, North Africa and India.
The event commenced with a speech from His Excellency where he highlighted the emphasis and the importance that is given to HSE in Bahrain since the National Oil and Gas Authority (NOGA) was established five years ago. His Excellency also mentioned the many environmental friendly projects that have been completed in Bahrain; such as the "Low Sulphur Diesel" Project worth of USD 700 Million and the USD 150 million worth "Refinery of Gas Desulphurisation" Project.
His Excellency commented on some of the topics and the information that will be exchanged during the event saying: "Information that is going to be shared during this conference is like golden nuggets."
He added: "Topics like project risk assessment from a security perspective will be of great interest to the delegates at a time when political unrest in parts of the Middle East expose companies to an ever increasing risk to employees, investments and reputation."
Followed by His Excellency's speech, Mr. Alain Labastie, SPE 2011 President welcomed the attendees and addressed the importance of this conference and of the HSE topic, especially after the Gulf of Mexico Incident.
The VIPs toured the exhibition taking place alongside the three-day conference which included major oil and gas organisations, HSE solutions providers and media supporters such as Baker Hughes, BAPCO, DEW Journal, Digital Framework, EHS Insight, Exploration Logistics Group, Fleet Management Solutions, Medilink International (Institute of Health and Safety), Oil and Gas News (OGN), Oil Spill Response, OPITO International, Remote Medical International, RPS Energy, SafeDrive International, Saudi Aramco, Society of Petroleum Engineers, and Terralog Technologies.
The Executive Plenary Session covering the main theme of the event; Leading HSE Excellence; took place right after the VIP tour. The session focused on the importance of HSE training and the support required by organisations to evolve the HSE culture to an interdependent culture whereby the gap between the expectations and the mechanisms of delivering a high quality HSE programme can be minimised. Panelists included key industry figures such as Ali Al Jarwan, Chief Executive Officer, ADMA-OPCO, Nick Beeson, CEO and Managing Director Egypt, Libya and Jordan, Baker Hughes, Faisal Al Mahroos, Chief Executive Officer, BAPCO, and Ibraheem Assaadan, General Manager of Drilling, Saudi Aramco.
Discussions took place on the various investments in HSE staffing, the appropriate procedures and policies that need to be followed to ensure that the highest standards of HSE are being met within the industry.
HSE management, behaviour based safety and health were key topics discussed on the opening day of the conference. The afternoon sessions, co-chaired by professionals from QP, Dolphin Energy, Kuwait Oil Company, Halliburton and BP addressed the leadership and commitment required for HSE excellence, how to create a culture of safety, the misconceptions about behaviour safety and other health related issues, such as tuberculosis management, and human factors design considerations for the ageing population.
Waleed Refaay, Managing Director SPE Middle East, North Africa and India said: "The opening day has been very successful, bringing together over 250 HSE experts from around the world to discuss imperative issues affecting our industry from a HSE perspective."
He added: "The support from our Patron; H.E Dr. Abdul-Hussain bin Ali Mirza, Minister of Oil and Gas Affairs has been instrumental in leveraging the quality of the event to new heights. The support we received from our endorsing organisations, the management of leading oil and gas organisations and from all our sponsors has also had a key effect in attracting the highest calibre delegates".
The first of the day of the event concluded with the SPE Regional Honours and Awards Ceremony during an exquisite gala dinner, which marked the significant technical and professional contributions of some of the Middle East figureheads in the oil and gas industry.
This event is sponsored by Saudi Aramco (Titanium and SPE Awards Dinner Associate Sponsor), Baker Hughes (Platinum Sponsor), BAPCO (Gold Sponsor), ADCO (SPE Awards Dinner Principal Sponsor), ONGC (SPE Awards Dinner Principal Sponsor) and Halliburton (Lanyards Sponsor).This event is endorsed by Bahrain Health and Safety Society, OGP (International Association of Oil and Gas Producers), IPIECA and IOSH.
Media Supporters for this event are DEW Journal and OGN.
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The Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) is a not-for-profit professional association whose members are engaged in energy resources development and production. SPE serves 92,000-plus members from more than 117 countries worldwide. SPE is a key resource for technical knowledge related to the oil and gas exploration and production industry and provides services through its publications, conferences, workshops, forums, and website at www.spe.org.
© Press Release 2010
