Future Growth Project
Wellhead Pressure Management Project
Kazakhstan is an enormously big country, biggest landlocked country in the world and 9th in size in total. Therefore, it's no wonder that they have all the elements from the periodic table. Their energy reserves are very attractive and there are a lot of foreign investments. Near Atyrau, a city in the western Kazakhstan steppe, there's a huge reservoir named Tengiz Field, where the oil column reacHSE 1.6 km across. Tengiz ranks as the world’s deepest producing supergiant oil field and the largest single-trap producing reservoir in existence. The Future Growth Project-Wellhead Pressure Management Project (FGP-WPMP) will further increase total daily production from the Tengiz reservoir. First oil is planned for 2022. Scope of work that Velesstroy received includes site preparation, piling & foundations, manholes, steelwork, mechanical equipment integration, pipework, anti-corrosion protection, insulation, electrical cables, telecommunication cables and temporary facilities required to support construction.
Parallel with successfully completing works on the 3rd train on Yamal LNG project, Velesstroy was in the process of negotiating a new project that was starting to roll in Kazakhstan. It was to be the first project for Velesstroy outside of Russia. My boss Zeljko Posmodi, regional HSE Manager for the Yamal peninsula, participated in the negotiations presenting our HSE accomplishments on Yamal. After the first couple of rounds, I was invited to join the discussion with the potential client, Chevron. Soon after, Mr. Posmodi was offered to take over the HSE helm on this new project. He accepted and offered me a plane ticket if I would like to go with him. Considering that we were a good team, I gladly accepted the offer. And if anyone spent 2.5 years in the Arctic part of Siberia like I did, he will understand the need for a change of scenery. 😉
Tengiz saw me rising in ranks and becoming HSE Compliance Lead. I was given freedom to choose my own team so during the first couple of months I conducted a lot of job interviews and hand-picked a team of 39 people. HSE officers, leads, site supervisors, data analysts, IIF (Incident & Injury Free) coacHSE and HSE trainers were all a part of my team. In addition, I was negotiating and proccuring PPE and other safety equipment with local suppliers and guiding Velesstroy's subcontractors to ensure that they get to the same level of HSE standards that Velesstroy had to achieve according to Chevron's CHSEM (Contractor Health, Environment and Safety) process.
Besides that, I was writing procedures according to Chevron’s specifications and requirements and participated in coaching sessions for emergency evacuation personnel because at the beginning of the project I was one of only 2 persons on Tengiz with “Train the Trainer” certificate for “Avon Hood”, air purifying escape respirator.
All in all, 2 beautiful years on Tengiz. A lot of new things learned, a lot of experiences shared, a lot of new acquaintances, a couple of close friends met… And the pinnacle of it all, at one dinner in Atyrau I met my future wife Aliya. She is an interior designer. You can check out her portfolio if you’re interested.
