Paragon Engineering Services, Inc. has joined with a prominent local firm in Angola to establish a new engineering services company in the region. Paragon joined with Prodoil Exploração e Produção de Hidrocarbonetos, S.A.R.L. (Prodoil), to form Paragon Angola Engenharia e Serviços, Lda., which aims to enhance local engineering infrastructure and expand Paragon’s role in Angola’s many production facility and pipeline projects.

“Paragon’s Houston office has participated in Angolan projects for several years, but the oil and gas industry is changing,” said Paragon CEO Ken Arnold. “Houston and the Gulf of Mexico no longer dominate the global industry, and countries such as Angola are rightfully striving to bolster their economies and standards of living by mandating the use of as much ‘local content’ as possible. Since 1999, Paragon has responded proactively to this trend by developing a strategy that both enhances local content and realizes the benefits of Paragon’s Houston-based expertise.”

Arnold explained that secure communication links and Web-enabled work processes and software systems allow real-time collaboration between Paragon’s Houston office and the newly established home office of Paragon Angola Engenharia e Serviços, Lda.

“Angola-based professionals on the team will conduct preliminary and detailed engineering locally, while their Houston counterparts will provide project management and front-end engineering support, ” said Arnold.

According to Prodoil President Pedro Godinho Domingos, the efforts of Angola’s Petroleum Ministry and Sonangol, the national oil company, helped to pave the way for the establishment of Paragon Angola Engenharia e Serviços, Lda.

“The Angolan government and Sonangol have campaigned to increase local content on oil and gas projects,” said Godinho. “This effort has encouraged companies such as Paragon to seek relationships that will result in long-term benefits to Angola’s infrastructure and workforce.”

On August 12 in Luanda, Angola, the shareholder agreement for Paragon Angola Engenharia e Serviços, Lda. was signed, and the company achieved official registration from Angola’s Agência Nacional de Investimento Privado (ANIP). That evening, a party to celebrate the company’s establishment was attended by guests including Anibal Silva, Angola’s Petroleum Vice Minister, and Syanga Abilio, Vice President of Sonangol Holding.

Over the past few months, several Angolan engineers have received on-the-job training at Paragon’s Houston office. Paragon Vice President Richard Rankin, who serves as a director of Paragon Angola Engenharia e Serviços, Lda, explained the goals of this program.

“After the training, these engineers will go back to Angola and work on projects in-country, sharing their first-hand knowledge of Paragon’s tools and work processes,” said Rankin.

Paragon’s Angolan partner, Prodoil Exploração e Produção de Hidrocarbonetos, S.A.R.L., is one of a number of companies that form the Veleiro Group (Grupo Veleiro), headquartered in Luanda, Angola. Veleiro Group serves the oil exploration and production, mining and industrial service sectors of the Angolan and West Africa markets. Prodoil was founded to concentrate on the upstream oil and gas industry in those markets.

Houston-based Paragon Engineering Services, Inc. provides project management, engineering, design/drafting, procurement, safety, environmental, construction management, inspection and training services to the oil and gas and pipeline industries. Paragon’s expertise encompasses oil and gas production and treating, gas compression, onshore and offshore pipelines, midstream/gas processing projects, onshore facilities, offshore platforms, floating production facilities, subsea systems, human factors engineering and safety and environmental management programs. The company employs approximately 550 people worldwide. In addition to the new joint venture company in Angola, Paragon maintains a 75-person office in Kuwait.