After a multi-phase and intensive selection process, Total E&P Yemen celebrated yesterday, the 11th of August 2009, the final selection of its ten winners of TOTAL Scholarship Porgramme. Out of 800 applicants, 5 of the undergraduate scholarship deservingly won and will depart early September to pursue their BA Degrees in Engineering and Earth Science at the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom. The other 5 graduate scholarship winners will also depart early September to pursue their MA Degrees in Law and Business Ethics and Business and Taxation Law at the University of Cergy-Pontoise in France.

H.E. Mr. Abdulmalik Alama, the Deputy Minister of Oil and Minerals, gave a speech in the celebration where he extended the congratulations of the Ministry of Oil and Minerals to the scholarship winners and advised them to work hard in order to earn high academic achievement and to come back home to serve their country in petroleum operations fields. Deputy Minister Alama added that, “TOTAL is highly appreciated by the Ministry of Oil and Minerals for this initiative that will help feed the petroleum industry in Yemen with highly qualified personnel, both technically and administratively. This is the real interpretation of long-term partnership petroleum companies in the country should have with Yemen.”  The Deputy Minister stressed on other petroleum companies to follow the steps of TOTAL and launch similar programmes with specialties directed towards mechanical and instrumentation engineering.

Mr. Martin Deffontaines, General Manager of Total E&P Yemen, congratulated the winners and said that “we are happy to celebrate the final selection of ten top quality Yemeni students who have a great potential, represent our future, and who will come back home from their studies to give back to their nation.” 

General Manager Deffontaines added that “time has gone for petroleum companies to just invest in industrial activities. Time has come for petroleum companies to be effectively engaging in advancing the social and educational development in their host countries. The Scholarship Programme we sponsor is among other socioeconomic initiatives that show our commitment to meeting some of this country’s development needs and developing, in addition, a long-term partnership with Yemen.”

Total in Yemen:

Present in Yemen for more than 20 years, Total is the operator of Block 10, East Shabwa and holds several other participations in oil exploration and production blocks. Being the largest foreign investor in Yemen, Total is also the technical leader of the largest-ever Yemen LNG project with a participation of 39.6%.