ENOC Group opened its first and one-of-a-kind emergency response centre in Jebel Ali Free Zone, as a part of its ongoing strategy and plans to protect its assets along with Dubai Civil Defence.
The opening ceremony was attended by HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, Managing Director and CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, Chairman of the Board of Directors of ENOC Group; members of Board of Directors; and Group CEO, HE Saif Humaid Al Falasi.
Spread over nearly 90,000 ft², the centre will operate 24/7 with three shifts and one relief shift. Serving as first responders from ENOC, the centre is distinguished by its strategic location, which allows access to all ENOC facilities in JAFZA in less than four minutes, strengthening coordination and alignment with local Civil Defence partners through the effective implementation of Pre-Incident Plans (PIPs) and Emergency Response Plans (ERP). It is built with emergency communication system and an operation data management system.
It is proven that the first 15 minutes are critical in a hydrocarbon incident, and prompt action is important to prevent potential accidents. The new centre will provide expedited services to minimise any loss to ENOC’s assets and to protect precious human lives in addition to ensure business continuity.
His Excellency Saif Humaid Al Falasi, Group CEO, ENOC, said: “As a national oil company, our assets are essential to serving the energy needs of Dubai and the wider nation. We are committed to ensure business continuity without any disruption, with the health, safety and welfare of our employees, citizens and assets as our top-most priority. Our new emergency response centre has been designed to operate 24/7 to provide swift assistance to ENOC’s people and assets. The opening reflects our commitment to making continuous improvements in terms of health, safety and environment standards, further contributing to a strong energy infrastructure for our nation.”
The centre includes a highly advanced operations room equipped with artificial intelligence that allows the team to quickly respond to accidents and helps firefighters to reduce the time of intervention through the initial detection of the type of accident via hotlines and monitoring devices. This enables the team to take appropriate decisions to control emergency situations with comprehensive knowledge before moving to the site of the accident. The centre is also equipped with early notification technology that allows up to 400 users to be notified within only eight seconds with the confirmation of receipt, to start the alert and response process by the concerned teams and the Group’s senior management.
The centre also includes ten vehicles, the most important of which are two large firefighting trucks, considered the first of their kind in the world in terms of technologies and specifications. Designed 90% based on specifications customised by the ENOC Emergency Response Centre team, the trucks were manufactured to deal with industrial and petroleum fires. These two vehicles can deal with high efficiency and respond to two different types of fires simultaneously, in addition to being equipped with other modern technologies and a pumping unit with a capacity of 4,000 gallons per minute for a range of up to 135 meters capable of reaching the top of the tallest refinery tower in the world. The centre also houses the largest foam stockpile of its kind with a capacity of 100,000 liters, where a foam truck can hold additional 25,000 liters.
The centre’s employees have been trained by professionals on how to react and deal with emergencies. The centre is equipped with three fire trucks, two trucks for towing foam water monitors, rapid response vehicle, first response car, two command cars among other state-of-the-art equipment.
ENOC Group regularly conducts internal safety trainings such as fire drills as well as Joint Fire Emergency Exercises in co-ordination with Dubai Civil Defence. Enhancing emergency response measures is crucial for the business continuity of the Group, which organises training programmes for its employees every year based on their needs.
ENOC has achieved more than 60 million safe man hours on their local and international portfolio of projects from 2018 to 2022, which includes construction of oil storage terminals, pipelines, infrastructure and industrial buildings with associated high-risk activities involving handling of hazardous substances.
