Raise the bar, construction sector urged

Players in the construction industry have been urged to raise their level of expertise to enable them to further enhance productivity in the country's oil and gas sector.

"The oil and gas industry and ancillary industries are important, in being
the leader and main contributor to the country becoming a high-income economy in 2020," said Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) chief executive officer Datuk Seri Dr Judin Abdul Karim.

In his opening speech at a seminar on business opportunities in the oil and
gas industry here today, he said in 2009, the industry contributed 19 per cent
of the total gross domestic product (GDP) while the construction industry

contributed 3.5 per cent.

Judin explained that the oil and gas industry is a big industry that can
greatly benefit from being given a high priority in the government's Economic
Transformation Prgramme (ETP).

Speaking to reporters here today, he said: "When the government decided that
they wanted to embark on a major transformation in the oil and gas industry, it
spelled a big opportunity for the construction industry players."

The development of the midstream and the downstream industries are among the areas that the construction industry players can look into, he added.

Realising the importance of and the huge business opportunities that the oil
and gas industry can offer, he said CIDB together with the government will
provide training modules to prepare and equip the participants.

"The government has already determined the direction of the economy, and now it is up to the industry players to rise up and take up the challenge," he said.

The one-day seminar is aimed at exploring the business opportunities in the
oil and gas industry for the benefit of construction industry players.

It is jointly organised by the Malaysian Oil and Gas Services Council,
Offshore Structures and Fabricators Associations of Malaysia, and Octagon
Petroleum Technology Sdn Bhd. -- Bernama