Firm Harps On Safety At Drilling Rigs, Awards 4 Personnel

Tirex Petroleum & Energy has emphasised its commitment to the highest standards of rig projects safety, while recognising outstanding safety consciousness and best practices.

To this end, it hosted its F.O.C.U.S programme (which stands for ‘Formulate ’, ‘Organise’, ‘Communicate’, ‘Undertake’, and ‘Summarise’) on Safety Initiative recently.

The event held in Lagos had key stakeholders and partners in attendance, the safety award initiative celebrated four personnel who demonstrated exceptional dedication to maintaining a safe and secure rig environment.

It also acknowledged the critical role each crew member plays in identifying and mitigating potential safety hazards, fostering a collaborative safety culture on the rig.

The awardees emerged winners after a careful review of about 250,000  safety observations by the safety committee on the rig where only the most impactful and insightful observation cards on the rig in 2024 were selected.

The award is aimed to empower a culture of safety on rigs and reinforce Tirex Petroleum & Energy core values of safety and operational excellence critical in high-risk operations like drilling.

They include Makasi Uche, a Tubular Running Engineer; Gbenga Eniabilayin, a Derrick Man from OES Limited; Zebulon Izuchukwu, Warehouse man from OES Limited; and Ovuakporayeni Yugbovwre, a Tubular Inspector.

Tirex’s general manager, Operations, Assets and Business Expansion, Thompson Tatua, highlighted the safety in achieving operational success and protecting lives.

He explained that the acronym F.O.C.U.S. was set in motion to ensure the successful process of achieving total safety on the rigs. “Safety is not just a routine; it is a culture we must practice every day. Through this initiative, we recognize the incredible efforts of our rig workers in maintaining a safe rig environment, ensuring that everyone returns home safely to their families,” he said.

One of the award recipients, Ovuakporayeni Yugbovwre, a tubular inspector who worked on the OES Respect – SOKU 16 project said, identification of hazards in work environments is key in ensuring operational success. “Part of my observations on board the rig when I resumed is the safety induction which was very precise and informative, it gave me the understanding that safety is a personal thing. One personnel can cause grave dangers to others on the rig, so we all must look out for one another,” he said.