May-June 2009 A Renaissance Services SAOG Group Newsletter vol.0 issue3

CEO message05

In brief01

July – The Renaissanceracing trimaran whichplaced thid in the first leg ofthe iShares race will embarkon its second race leg in theMediterranean town of Hy-eres, South of France. Youcan follow the progress onwww.isharescup.com.

July – Oman celebratesRenaissance Day markingwhen His Majesty SultanQaboos acceded to thethrone in the Sultanate ofOman.

please visit www.renaissance-oman.com

August – Renaissance topublish Q2 results.

August – UPP’s OmanEconomic Review (OER)magazine will rollout a oneof a kind initiative to raiseawareness on environmen-tal conservation in Oman.For more details go towww.oeronline.com andclick on Green Awards.

Topaz COO named IMCA Chairman... PAC progress in Marmul andBahja...OER Debate and Awards...NTI student wins world prize...How to use water wisely...HSE stats...all inside!

00New ten-year, US$100 million contract

MAY - Renaissance has won a RO 38.5 million(US$ 100 million) ten-year contract with Agip KCOthrough the Topaz Energy and Marine subsidiaryBUE Kazakhstan.The contract, which calls for six new ice-class

barges, is in line with the long term nature of thebusiness and driving the Renaissance commitmentto growth.The award further solidifies the company’s ability

to deliver stable cash flows and investor returnsover a number of years in these times of global fi-nancial turmoil, and leverages the group’s alreadyleading market position in the Caspian.The six ice-class barges will be deployed in 2010

and are three cutting, one liquid-mud and two flat-top barges. Each is specialized to handle icy condi-tions and the units are all low-draft when fullyloaded. These features are essential to operating inthe shallow waters and harsh weather conditions ofthe Kashagan field.The news of this significant event appeared on

front business pages of local press.

02 Inside

03 From the Chairman’s statement

I repeat my assertion from our annual statement, that weshall not waste this crisis.

We are able to reassure all stakeholders that our positiveoutlook remains unchanged and reaffirm our promise to im-mediately inform you of any major positive confirmed de-velopments or negative setback to that view.”

Chairman of Renaissance Services SAOG, Samir J. Fancy

04Renaissance Values

Quality

We commit to em-brace a QualityAssurance culture.To drive and fostera “continuousimprovement”credo in every-thing we do. Neversatisfied, alwaysinnovative.

Lessons from a tiny Pacific Island

I recently came across an article by Mark Gimein dis-cussing the roller-coaster experience of the Nauruaneconomy:

The tiny Pacific nation of Nauru used to enjoy one ofthe highest per capita incomes in the world. Now it iseffectively bust. The key to its brief period of financialgreatness was phosphate, an important ingredient in

internalnewsletter

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fertiliser, derived from the accretionof thousands of years of bird drop-pings. All went well until the phos-phate ran out. The Nauruans hadprepared for this by building up a$1 billion national trust fund. It did-n’t last. There were bad propertybets, embezzlement and a comi-cally disastrous investment in ashort-lived London musical. It’seasy to view Nauru as an extremeexample of the ‘natural resourcescurse’ and bad investment advice.But it offers a universal lesson.There is no country in the world –from Nauru to the US – that cansustain itself indefinitely on theproceeds of yesterday’s economicsuccesses, no matter how well in-vested the funds. The only effectiveuse of money earned today is tochannel it into new industries that

ensure future vitality. Without that,the end will always be in sight, andpossibly closer than anyone thinks.

Now this lesson is relevant for alleconomies with current over-re-liance on finite resources. This iswhy the oil & gas driveneconomies in which we operateare implementing serious eco-nomic diversification pro-grammes. It is also why theglobal oil & gas majors pursueinitiatives to sustain the longevityof oil and gas fields; supportingglobal energy conservation, along-side innovative programmes to en-hance recovery of previouslyeconomically unviable reserves,while actively searching for newsources of energy.

The Nauru lesson is also relevantfor a company like Renaissance.Not meaning we should radicallydiversify from our core business

focus; but rather,within that focus,we must con-stantly be on thelookout for newo p p o r t u n i t i e s ,new ways ofdoing things, newways of helpingour clients andcustomers suc-

ceed in their objec-tives, through the relevance,quality, efficiency and effectivenessof the services we provide and theassets we deploy. Many of you willknow how I become restless andconcerned when we don’t have

something new and excitingon the anvil; and how I love itwhen I see positive agitationfor new growth occurringacross our businesses. TheNauruans missed that point.Renaissance people under-stand this at a gut level: Wedon’t rest on successes, andthat is why our growth path isso impressive.

Stephen R. ThomasCEORenaissance Services SAOG

Renaissance has recently fulfilled its commitmentto the Association of Early Intervention for Childrenwith Special Needs for the second year.Through the agreement, Renaissance has

pledged a 3-year agreement to support the trainingof 45 Omani teachers through a diploma programmein special education.If you are interested in donating your time or at-

tention to the Association of Early Intervention, thereare many facets that you can join including theawareness, advocacy or fund raising teams, amongothers. Visit www.aei.org.om/ejoin.htm for more de-tails on how you can contribute.We invite you to share your innovative ideas on

how you can make a positive contribution to thecommunity that you serve. Please write to CorporateCommunciations Manager, hala@tawoos.com

07Social Responsibility

06Topaz COO named IMCA Chairman

Chief Operating Officer ofTopaz Marine, Mr. Roy Donald-son, has recently been electedto Chairman of the InternationalMarine Contractors Association(IMCA) for its Middle East andIndia section. Mr. Donaldsonhad presided as the Vice Chair-man of IMCA during 2008 and

has served the Offshore andMarine industry for 20 years.Topaz has through its sub-

sidiaries Nico Middle East,Bue Caspian and Bue Kaza-khstan been a member ofIMCA since 1998. The IMCAis an international trade as-sociation founded in 1972

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08PAC Progress - Safety First

and sets technical and HSE stan-dards within the Offshore and Ma-rine Industry.Renaissance CEO Mr. Stephen

Thomas said, “We are very proud ofRoy’s achievement. He thoroughlydeserves this recognition as one ofthe outstanding leaders of the OSVindustry.”

The Contract Services Group has beencommitted to its mission in completing its PAC(Permanent Accommodation for Contractors)projects in Bahja and Marmul with all threecomponents of safety, time and cost entact.

At the Marmul site 1.2 million manhourswithout LTI come hand in hand with an ex-cellent safety culture and PPE, and compli-ance in housekeeping, hardware, vehicle,plant and equipment standards.Next issue: PAC Progress at Bahja

Pictures at MarmulClockwise from top: Excavation works formanholes; Laying out walkway;Roof waterproofing; Operatives working atheight with safety harness clipped oncorrectly

09CEO Visits Marmul PAC

JUNE - While on an inspection visit to Mar-mul, Renaissance CEO, Mr. Stephen Thomas,reported that he was very pleased with thesafety and progress made on site, and encour-aged everyone committed to and involved inthe Marmul project.“In any Renaissance project we strive to

achieve our mission to complete the projectsafely, on time and in cost,” said Mr. Thomaswhile stressing on the same for order of priori-ties. “I am absolutely delighted to say that I findthe entire conduct of the project to be excel-lent. The safety ethos and HSE-MS compliancehere are exemplary. When the safety is man-aged in this way, the consequence of on-timeand in-cost comes as no surprise. I urge ourproject team and their management to continuegiving every care and attention to the well-being and welfare of the workforce. There areover 800 people on this site, I salute them all,and thank them for their effort and diligence farfrom home in a hot, dusty, desert environment.So once again, well done and thank you to all.”

CEO Stephen Thomas withCSG - GM Development AdilBahwan and PAC ProjectConstruction Manager KamranRaza, and with other membersof the onsite team

13‘Kanoo 40’ completed

12Awareness

The Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority (SEWA)has stepped up its campaign against water misuse inJune by handing fines up to DH 10,000 (RO 1,000) forwasting and polluting water. “Water is a valuable re-source but is wasted by the public,” said Acting Direc-tor General Ibrahim bin Deemas of the SEWA.There are over 100 ways to save water, and it all

starts with you. Here are just a few tips:↗ Put food coloring in your toilet tank. If it seeps

into the toilet bowl without flushing, you have a leak.Fixing it can save up to 1,000 gallons a month.↗ Use drip irrigation for shrubs and trees to apply

water directly to the roots where it's needed.↗ Encourage your school system and company to

develop and promote water conservation among chil-dren and adults.↗ Water your lawn and garden in the morning or

evening when temperatures are cooler to minimizeevaporation.↗ Collect the water you use for rinsing fruits and

vegetables, then reuse it to water houseplants.↗ If water runs off your lawn easily, split your wa-

tering time into shorter periods to allow for better ab-sorption.↗ Don't use running water to thaw food. Defrost

food in the refrigerator for water efficiency and food

safety.↗ Turn off the water while

brushing your teeth and save25 gallons a month.↗ When you have ice left in

your cup from a take-outrestaurant, don't throw it in thetrash, dump it on a plant.

Most of the water in the GCCcomes from desalination plantswhich are extremely expensiveand only a few countries canafford them, and water conser-vation is a key environmentalissue that concerns the globeand every person. Can youimagine your life without clean,running water?

TISCO and NTI receive Ministry award14

MAY - Tisco and NTIhave been awarded by thenation’s Ministry of Man-power for outstandingOmanisation programmesfor the year 2008.Out of the hundreds of

companies in Oman judgedfor their Omanisation pro-grammes only 58 were rec-ognized by the Ministry inthe ceremony that tookplace recently. This marksthe fifth Omanisationaward for Tisco.

Left: Mr. Thomas withRenaissance, Tiscoand NTI staff

Bottom from Right:Mahfudh Al Hosni,Yaaqub Al Haddabi,and Salma al Shukeiryreceive their awardsfor recognition in joband company loyalty.

Mr. Stephen Thomas accepts Tisco award fromHE Maqbool bin Ali bin Sultan, Minister of Com-merce and Industry

Left:Ms. TurkiyaAl Hassani,NTI HR &AdminManagerreceivesOmanisationaward on be-half of NTI

Work in Progress11

Nico International has recentlycompleted the first milestone of alarge project for client Vopak Hori-zon.The Topaz Engineering unit has

successfully completed the de-sign, fabrication and installation ofoffshore trestles and pipes with-out a single lost time injury.The project is due for comple-

tion in December 2009.

Nico Craft, a part of Topaz Energy andMarine, has delivered a 30.2 metre crewboat named ‘Kanoo 40’ for client KanooShipping.The Kanoo 40 is a medium speed cata-

maran designed to service vessels within50 nautical miles from port of refuge.

Be a Safety Leader15

Feedback16

Let’s Hear from You!

Please send your ideas,comments, suggestions, sto-ries, pictures and the like toCorporate CommunicationManager, Hala Srouji, viaemail: hala@tawoos.com orphone: 24796636 (ext.303)

Thank You!

As a safety leader, what others actually see youdoing sets the standard of behavior of others. A personwho visits a site briefly and ignores the need to wearthe minimum PPE requirement sets a poor example.The message received is ‘we don’t really need to wearthese bump hats and safety shoes all the time, becausethat guy didn’t need them when he was here.’ Silenceor lack of action as a safety leader is the same as giv-ing your approval. Demonstrate your commitment andbeliefs that safety at work is really important to you.

OER Debate and Award event17

MAY - Attended by over 100 of corporateOman’s top leaders, the OER Debate and Awardevent held at Muscat’s Capital Market Authoritywas a collective success for its organizers, theOman Economic Review (OER) team.The debut event that discussed the state of the

Sultanate’s economy was organized under the aus-pices of HH Sayyid Tarik bin Shabib bin Taimur,

OER Editor-in-Chief, and HE Yahya AlJabri, Executive President of the CMA,and invited guest of honor HE Maqboolbin Ali bin Sultan, Minister of Commerceand Industry, to give a key note address.Oman’s Indian Ambassador Anil Wadhwaalso attended.

Renaissance CEO Mr. StephenThomas was one of seven panel speakerswho took part in the debate panel. Thespeakers also included Omantel CEO Dr.Amer al Rawas, Shell Oman MarketingCEO Faisal al Hashar, BankMuscat ChiefExecutive Abdulrazak Ali Issa, GalfarConstruction CEO Hans Erlings, National

Bank of Oman CEO Murray Sims andOman Cables Industry COO Hans Meiring.The distinguished panel speakers rep-

resent the very top listed companies in theSultanate recognized in OER’s Top 20 an-nual ranking for 2008 published lastmonth. In concluding the event the 20companies that made the ranking weregiven plaque mementos in recognition oftheir status.

Above: Mr. Stephen Thomas accepts Renaissance OER Award.

Top: OER Awards; Debate panel speakers.Right: CEO’s and Directors meet in the CMA trading floor

prior to the debate

Quality HSE18

2,082,270Contract Service Group total man-hoursin May; Zero LTI

Prize Student19

Ms. Rimpa Bhowmich, a student ofthe National Training Institute’s (NTI)Business Management Programme hasreceived a world prize in Corporate andBusiness Law. Rimpa is enrolled inNTI’s Association of Business Executive

(ABE) certification, a UK based award-ing body for many different courses andrecognized worldwide by employers.The Business Management program ofABE is accepted as an entry qualifica-tion to MBA programmes by many uni-versities worldwide.NTI’s Financial Studies Division of-

fers a wide range of professional aca-demic courses on Accountancy,Finance, Marketing, Business Manage-ment and related short term courses.Some of its offerings are professionalcourses such as ACCA, CAT, ABE &IAB. The pass rates and the overall re-sults in ACCA, ABE & IAB from NTIcourse programmes are much higherthan the global pass rates.

Employee Focus20

Is it true that you have 150,000 stamps?The total collection is 150,000+ stamps, but the

mint which is very rare and very valuable is almost25,000 stamps. I am a member of around 24 coun-tries of the Philatelic organizations.What is that?Philatelic is a stamp collector ’s organization,

each country will have a department of the Phila-telic, even Oman has it. So you pay in advance tobecome a member and when the country puts outa stamp they’ll mail it to you directly. Stamps thatare only limited prints will disappear in a day andmay not come out again. That is why collecting hasbecome very important!What’s the stamp collecting culture like, and

what’s the business aspect to it?There are swappers that meet to exchange

stamps and other valuable collectors’ items. Otherthan stamps I collect old postcards also, phonecards, coins, mint bank notes. So we exchange.Some people will be interested in stamps andsome of them interested in phone cards. Top overprinted stamps are very rare to find, and stampswith mistakes have a value. I’ve been to more than100 swap meets around the world but now I’ve re-duced to only a few places like Finland, Australia,UK and Poland. Some of the collectors becomevery good friends and we meet to exchange faceto face.Is collecting in your genes?Later on I noticed my grandparents had a col-

lecting habit, when they gave me over 100 year

documents of my grand-grandfatherfor instance. None of my brothers orsisters has this habit. When Istarted my collection at the age of12, my uncle gave me a few stampsand asked me to collect them, at thetime I used to collect whatever I seein the shape of a stamp. I didn’tknow how to collect or how to han-dle it, I used to put gum on thebackside and stick it in my note-book, but it’s not the proper way ofcollecting. Collecting is majorlyabout hygienic care and methodsthat I learned later on.Are your kids collectors?I’m trying to get them in the habit.

My collection is huge and taking care of it isnot easy. But also now I’m encouraging mycolleagues’ kids who are interested in collect-ing. Collecting has become very rare sincetoday everything is email, email! Childrenhardly see stamps. I make a starter kit with afew commemorative stamps from variouscountries with lots of colors to interest kidsand it’s worked. Also it’s a good gift to give aPhilatelic membership for a kid, for just RO 20at the Oman Post the kids will start receivingstamps and mail in their name, it’s very en-couraging.How much time do you spend on your

collection?

For the last two years I couldn’tspend much time because my son hadjust come into the family, I couldn’t par-ticipate much, but weekly I’ll spend halfa day. Before, I used to spend twohours every day. It’s a good learningtool because you learn so much aboutcultures and news events. You can seehistory in the stamps, or sports, lead-ers, and various categories. They arevery creative and can give you lots ofideas.

Murali Kannan is Creative Director at UMS andworks in Interactive & IT Solutions media. Muralihas been with UMS for over 15 years.