UAE’s leading integrated global oil and gas company Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) Group has opened its first and one-of-a-kind emergency response center in Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA), in line with its ongoing strategy and plans to protect its assets along with Dubai Civil Defence.
Spread over nearly 90,000 square feet, the center will operate 24/7 with three shifts and one relief shift. Serving as first responders from ENOC, the center is distinguished by its strategic location, which enables to access 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).
The new center is built with an 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 center will provide expedited services to minimize any loss to ENOC’s assets and to protect human lives in addition to ensuring business continuity.
Saif Humaid Al Falasi Group CEO – ENOC
“As a national oil company, our assets are essential to serving the energy needs of Dubai and the wider nation. We are committed to ensuring 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 center 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 center includes a highly advanced operations room equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) that enables 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.
The center 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.
Further, it 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 percent based on specifications customized by the ENOC Emergency Response Centre team, the trucks were manufactured to deal with industrial and petroleum fires.
The center’s employees have been trained by professionals on how to react and deal with emergencies. The center is equipped with three fire trucks, two trucks for towing foam water monitors, a rapid response vehicle, a first response car, two command cars among other state-of-the-art equipment.
ENOC Group regularly conducts internal safety training 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 organizes training programs 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 the construction of oil storage terminals, pipelines, infrastructure and industrial buildings with associated high-risk activities involving the handling of hazardous substances.
