Hundreds of students enrolled in the University of Guyana’s (UG) Petroleum Chemical, Mechanical and Mining Engineering programmes are set to benefit from an enhanced practical experience with the commissioning of a state-of-the-art MUD lab.
The university teamed up with Halliburton – one of the world’s largest oil field service companies – to commission the new Drilling Fluids Lab (MUD Lab) at the Faculty of Engineering and Technology at the Turkeyen Campus on Friday.
A release from UG detailed that the lab is one of two which were negotiated during the GIPEX summit back in November 2019. The other specific high-tech software modelling lab will be commissioned in the coming weeks.
Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paloma Mohamed Martin at the commissioning ceremony relayed that the Drilling Fluids Lab “is going to put our graduates far way ahead of the game in terms of their practical experience in analyzing fluids that are used on the FPSOs.”
She explained that the launching of the facility comes at a time when the university is about to roll out a suite of new programmes for persons who would like to specialise in certain areas, including eight professional courses that were developed and will be administered by the Institute of Energy Diplomacy starting this June.
Additionally, UG recently approved a Master in Environmental Management and the School for Entrepreneurship and Business Innovation (SEBI) in rolling out a Procurement and Value Chain Master’s Degree very soon, the Vice-Chancellor said.
This is to join with the Associate Degree in Petroleum Engineering and the Master in Petroleum Engineering, as well as the Master in Renewable Energy that is already being offered.
Meanwhile, Halliburton Country Manager, Vahman Jurai, relayed that the drilling of fluids or drilling of mud is one of the main services the company provides in Guyana and is a fundamental part of its operations.
He explained that since the start of Haliburton’s Guyana operations to present, it has been continually increasing capacity, providing technical support and solutions to the market.
“We have significantly increased our portfolio solutions to the local energy. Presently almost 90% of our services come from Guyana, and at the end of this year, we will be close to 100%.
“The gift of the Fluids Lab to the Faculty of Engineering and Technology is one of our initiatives in building capacity in Guyana. We view it as an investment in the future of the students who will grow to be potential industry leaders and who will shape the sustainability of the energy industry in Guyana,” Jurai said.
Also giving remarks was the Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Technology at the University, Verlyn Klass, who noted that the lab will support the teaching of courses and give students an added advantage when seeking employment as Mud Technicians.
The physical demonstration of the equipment in the Mud Lab was facilitated by Dinesh Baldeosingh, Technical Professional Senior, Halliburton; and Morris Solomon, Laboratory Technician, Halliburton.
The entire agreement (MUD LAB, LandMark Computer Lab, training, Maintenance and Staff and Student Development) between UG and Halliburton is valued at US$2.2 million, of which the MUD Lab project accounts for about US$20,000.
The collaboration is aimed at facilitating enhanced training for students in the Departments of Petroleum and Geological Engineering, Chemistry and certain aspects of Earth and Environmental Sciences.
Other aspects of the project include maintenance, training, technical support for staff and student development.
