We’ve been working with an international energy firm for almost a year, supporting their pivotal role in the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project.
They offer engineering project management and oil services depending on the scope of the project.
Discover what we’ve done to secure and retain talent in our latest case study.
The challenge
The East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline project began back in 2017. EACOP is the first major oil and gas project to take place in Uganda – and very few contractors have ever worked there before (although, they may have worked in other African countries).
Once completed, it will transport oil sourced from Uganda’s Lake Albert oilfields to the Chongoleani peninsula near Tanga Port. To undertake this project and unlock Uganda’s oil potential, EACOP needed local talent and expert contractors from around the globe.
They require contractors who work closely with them – in other words, contractors who are seen as their people but employed by a third-party expat agency.
EACOP specifies that 70% of the labour force must be local. So, the challenge is to secure local workers for this project and upskill them to a high standard with transferable capabilities for future jobs. And that’s where WRS came in.
The solution
WRS was tasked with finding, securing, and onboarding contractors that met the many requirements for various roles across the EACOP project.
As a third-party expat agency, we’re able to remove a lot of the hassle and take care of the full employee life cycle. While sourcing the right talent isn’t always a walk in the park, we have a database of candidates ideally suited to several roles, particularly those requiring high-level skills.
So, once our recruitment experts source the talent, our contractor care team takes over. WRS ensures all contractors comply with their in-house checklist and medical requirements.
Richard Baillie-Gray, WRS’ Contractor Care Manager, highlighted the cooperation to efficiently mobilise contractors. He said: “In principle, this sounds easy. However, it takes a great deal of coordination and checking to ensure that the immigration requirements are completed whilst considering the mobilisation and project requirements as well.”
WQS is our joint venture company in East Africa between WRS and Q-Sourcing Servtec to recruit and support both locals and expat contractors. Our UK and local teams on the ground and dedicated in-country manager helped mobilise contractors. We prepare any necessary work permits, take care of payroll compliance, and book rotational flights (both international and domestic) and hotels in line with the contractor, client, and project requirements.
Throughout this project and others, we’ve continued to work with the contractors. Each month, we check in with them and make our client aware of any hurdles. As Richard puts it: “We provide an ‘After Care’ Service, where we liaise with the contractors to ensure that the project is going well and swiftly resolve potential issues.”
The result
There’s already a lot to be positive about and WRS has been committed to removing stress when dealing with obstacles.
As part of working in a developing market in East Africa, WRS was looking for a CSR project where we could make a difference.
And so, we are working with a local orphanage based close to the oil and gas production area, providing charitable donations and offering skills training through our Training business TASC to equip the older children with transferable technical skills.
As the EACOP project continues, we hope that we’ll carry on securing and nurturing talent across the industry.
Capitalise on contractor care services with WRS
Are you looking for contractor care solutions? WRS supports clients of all sizes from around the globe to meet their needs and deliver energy projects.
From sourcing and onboarding talent to offering unrivalled aftercare, we’ll go above and beyond to find your contractors and mobilise them, too.
Find out more and contact WRS today.
