KUCHING: Petronas launched a nationwide Tender Clinic and Integrity Advocacy initiative to increase local vendors’ bidding capability and awareness on the company’s policies on integrity and governance.
The event, held at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre recently, was broadcast live to about 300 participants in Bintulu, Miri, Kota Kinabalu, Kertih and Pengerang.
The sessions were part of Petronas’ efforts to give focus on increasing participation in competitive tenders from companies in the respective states, Petronas media engagement group strategic communications said in a statement yesterday.
It said Petronas awarded contracts via tenders, based on meritocracy, and priority goes to capable local vendors in their respective work scope.
The company’s vice-president of group procurement Samsudin Miskon and chief integrity officer Datuk Rohaizad Yaakob officiated at the programme. More sessions are expected to be held on a quarterly basis to reach out to all Petronas vendors.
Samsudin in his speech said that as the oil and gas services and equipment (OGSE) industry consolidates to fit the new realities in the energy sector, the future belongs to those with the capability and endurance to weather the challenging times in the industry.
“Local vendors need to be agile and capable to stay relevant and sustainable. It is in Petronas’ interest to receive many high-quality tender submissions both technically and commercially, to promote healthy competition among these vendors,” he added.
Rohaizad, meanwhile, said that it is equally important to do things well, and to do it right, with complete integrity.
“Petronas has always treated merit, governance and integrity as its utmost priority in everything it does, with zero tolerance to corruption. With Malaysia placing more importance on anti-corruption and corporate liability, it is imperative for vendors to comply with all applicable integrity and governance,” he said.
He added that the consequences of non-compliance are grave to the vendors, their companies, Petronas and the nation.
Participating vendors expressed appreciation for the insightful session and commended Petronas’ effort to conduct the clinics on a quarterly basis.
“It was a good session where Petronas outlined the steps of tender submission. It cleared the air as some vendors used to have the wrong perception that their bid might not be treated fairly,” said Bundan Ngila from BWS Engineering Sdn Bhd at the session in Bintulu.
At the same session, Atien Nadot from Kenyalang Harta Sdn Bhd, said that as a new player in the industry, the session was very helpful to him as it exposed him to facets that he had earlier overlooked.
Meanwhile, Fatin Amirah Iskhandar, from TAS Institute of Oil and Gas in Kota Kinabalu, said she would advise her counterparts to view Petronas as a role model when it comes to handling business.
“I am not entirely new to the tender process but I learned new tips from this session and appreciate that Petronas handles its procurement process with strong emphasis on integrity,” she said.
Muhammad Ashraf Zulkifli from JNJ Oil and Gas Sdn Bhd in Kuala Lumpur, said detailed information shared during the session empowered him with the technical know-how as well as a clearer understanding of Petronas’ integrity and governance policies.
“I would pay extra attention now to the technicalities of the tender process, which I had earlier neglected,” he added.
Islindah Ishak from Excel Provision Sdn Bhd in Pengerang, said she is now more confident of submitting a winning proposal.
“I also appreciate Petronas’ explanation on its emphasis on transparency, which had cleared doubts some vendors had with regards to the process involved. I would share this with my peers, as well as on the importance of understanding the process-flow to enable submission of high-quality tender documents,” she added.
The consensus among the participants was for Petronas to continue organising such a programme as it would provide more awareness and clarity on Petronas’ tendering process and policies on governance and integrity.
