Accra, Feb. 18, GNA - Tullow Ghana on Thursday said it remained committed to the promotion of local content in its business, but would continue to place even greater premium on the value of safety for all stakeholders.

In a statement signed by Mr. Anthony Djokoto, Senior Legal Counsel of Tullow Ghana, the company said it would continue to be guided by strict standards in the petroleum industry.

"For good reason, we are eager to perform our transport services in strict adherence with and accordance with known Offshore Gas and Petroleum (OGP) guidelines which, in simple terms, are substantially higher than the standards that CityLink currently has in place," the statement said. While fully acknowledging the successful pioneering role of CityLink and other local carriers have played in promoting local civil aviation in Ghana, the company said it would pursue a stringent global policy of total commitment to best industry standards in every aspect of its operations. "Our decision to engage any contractor or service provider, be it local or otherwise has always been dictated by the company's requirement to meet Offshore Gas and Petroleum standards," it said.

As the pace of work intensifies in the Jubilee Field, it has become imperative for Tullow to secure a world class OGP standard Fixed Wing and Helicopter transport solution.

"CityLink, which Tullow has used as a transport provider until December 15, 2009 currently operates only a fixed wing service and as may be expected, we continually made our service requirements and standards clear to the local airline throughout the period of our association with them," the statement explained.

The company said it remained confident that CityLink and indeed other local airlines and service providers would overtime rise up to the challenges posed by the high standards required in the emerging upstream oil and gas industry.

"Whilst we make no apologies for conducting our business in strict adherence to these industry standards, we are committed to working together with Ghanaian businesses to pursue a mutual objective for increased local content in the oil and gas industry in the country," the statement added. 18 Feb. 10