Hydro has completed an extensive company visit to the Ural and Volga regions in Russia. The goal of the trip is to qualify more local suppliers for future offshore developments in Russia.
Hydro’s ongoing Supplier Development Program in Northwest Russia has expanded geographically. A total of 13 companies from the cities of Volgograd, Chelyabinsk, Yekaterinburg, Samara and Voronezh were recently visited by Hydro during a three-week long tour of central parts of the country.
"The success of offshore developments in Russia will be dependent on a national supply industry that is prepared to deliver goods and services to large-scale projects, such as the Shtokman development," Hydro Russia president, Petter Nore, said during a press conference in Voronezh on Wednesday.
The press event was held in the offices of the Voronesh region administration, together with representatives from companies Kosmosneftegaz, Nadym-Gazprom, Voronezh Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Voronezh Mechanical Plant.
"Hydro’s Supplier Development Program will now analyze the extensive base of information accrued during last week's visit. The program targets the qualification of more suppliers for future offshore developments in Russia – such as the Shtokman project," Nore stated.
Putin, Bondevik declaration follow-up
In 2004, Hydro qualified the five first Russian suppliers for deliveries to the Norwegian and Danish offshore sectors through the international qualification system Achilles. In addition, the company has decided to establish a supplier development center in Northwest Russia, in order to further facilitate potential Russian suppliers and to strengthen cooperation between Norwegian and Russian industry.
Hydro’s Supplier Development Program started two years ago as a follow-up to a joint declaration made by Russia’s president Vladimir Putin and Norway’s prime minister Kjell Magne Bondevik in 2002. The declaration emphasized the importance of cooperation between the Norwegian and the Russian supplier industries in the Barents Region.
Hydro has financed most of the project as part of its business engagement in Northwest Russia. The Russian regions of Murmansk and Arkhangelsk support the program, as well as Finnmark County, South Varanger Municipality, Innovation Norway and the Barents secretariat.
AkerKværner is acting as technical consultant and advisors for the program.