Hargeisa (THT) – The government is dispatching a two member ministerial level team to brief international oil companies with operational contracts in Somaliland on the just created Oil Protection Unit-OPU.
The team composed of the ministers of Interior and Energy Hon. Ali Mohamed Waran’ade and Hon. Eng Hussein Abdi Duale shall be travelling to Dubai on the 30th September for meetings and subsequent briefing to representatives of foreign companies which are exploring for oil in Somaliland.
Credible Somalilandsun Sources indicate that the objective of the Waran’ade –Duale meeting in Dubai is related to briefing to foreign energy firms operating in Somaliland on the OPU tender process evaluation results and the plan forward as per their Production Sharing Agreement-PSA
“The Somaliland ministers shall meet with those foreign firms, four, that have already initiated significant activities towards fulfilling their part of the PSA with Somaliland namely Genel Energy, DNO Norway, RAK Gas LLC and Ansa Wikf “ revealed our source
The Briefing is to be dominated by issues related to the now constituted 420 member strong Oil Protection Unit –OPU mandated with securing and protecting oil exploration and extraction activities as well as on Assaye Risk , a security consultancy firm headquartered in London that shall nurture the OPU with advisory, risk assessments and training solutions .
Assaye Risk whose bid among many others from reputed international security firms won the contract to foster the OPU from infancy to maturity, is a highly specialized security risk management company headquarted in London where it is Headed by a team of directors with a wealth of expertise in managing risk globally in the private and public sectors.
Though not Confirmed Assaye Risk is expected to be available at the Dubai meeting for technical briefing on its blueprint designed for the 420 strong elite Oil protection Unit as pertains to its, OPU, provision of security services to international oil companies thus allowing the republic of Somaliland to pursue seismic operations.
“Within the blueprint, Assaye Risk clearly defined the operational remit of the OPU as defensive and pre-emptive only with a mandate confined to protective services in support of the energy industry,”
Wickham said. The “government owned and commercially operated” unit would be recognized by the UN and constituted by Somaliland law” says Arabella Wickham, a director at the company adding that the firm’s approach to security risk is clear and simple yet highly effective
working with governments, the extractive industries, engineering, procurement and construction, the legal profession, the international media, the development community, private clients and investors Assaye Risk operates in Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia where it offers a holistic approach to security risk that embodies the principle of consent and working with cultural understanding, sensitivity and respect to achieve sustainable, cost and operationally effective solutions.
With the government having sealed the Assaye Risk contract and established the OPU seismic operations shall hopefully be reinstated and finalized thence embark on the actual extraction of the now proven billions in Barrels’ of oil buried deep within the bowels of Somaliland with protection from not only a well trained but equipped and disciplined elite security force.
By: Yusuf M. Hasan