OREANDA-NEWS. Gazprom Neft has signed a partnership agreement with the Omsk Regional Government on training the next generation of refining specialists. Financed under the Gazprom Neft “Home Towns” corporate social responsibility programme (with a RUB270-million spend envisaged over the first six years), this initiative will train young professionals from the Omsk Region to work at Gazprom Neft refining facilities in Russia and Serbia.

Gazprom Neft Deputy CEO for Administrative Affairs Vitaliy Baranov (left) discusses the programme with Omsk Region Minister of Education Sergei Alexeyev (right).

In addition to equipping cutting-edge training facilities and financing practical training and internships at Gazprom Neft, the company's investment will also support a number of grants and awards for both students and teachers. The company will also be working closely with local schools to provide students with an in-depth, hands-on understanding of the physical sciences.

Central to delivery of the programme will be the establishment of the new Gazprom Neft Faculty at Omsk State Technical University. From the new academic year students will be able to gain close tuition from experienced industry professionals on highly specialist courses not readily available elsewhere: courses currently in development include “Equipment and facilities in petrochemicals” and “Applied technologies in the processing of hydrocarbons”. The key focus of all courses, however, will be practical, hands-on training, at the Gazprom Neft Omsk Refinery - widely recognised as one of the most advanced facilities in Russia. Graduates of the new faculty will be offered the opportunity to work at Gazprom Neft refining facilities in Omsk, Moscow (the Gazprom Neft Moscow Refinery), Yaroslavl (Slavneft YANOS), and Serbia (Naftna Industrija Srbije, NIS).

Gazprom Neft Deputy CEO for Administrative Affairs Vitaliy Baranov commented: “Training young, qualified specialists in the practical skills they need to supplement their theoretical knowledge is central to our HR policy, and we are launching several targeted training programmes in various regions throughout the country, to that end. I am convinced that the Omsk Refinery will become one of the industry's foremost centres for both the theoretical and practical training of future refining specialists. We also plan to extend our cooperation with higher education providers in other regions in which we currently operate, and are committed to working closely with further educational establishments in driving forward educational standards - particularly in those disciples we see as essential to the long-term development of our company, and of the industry as a whole.”