Oil, gas exploration offers aviation firms a lifeline

Corporate News

Workers at the Nanyuki Airstrip push a small aircraft for maintenance. PHOTO | FILE 

By SOLOMON MBURU

Exploration of oil and gas has opened up huge business opportunities for Kenya’s aviation industry, cushioning the local aviation industry following a sharp drop in tourist numbers. 

Flying is often the only means of accessing the vastly inaccessible northern Kenya.

Mapping and survey of earmarked oil blocks has created demand for air services in the region while successful exploration has further fueled this demand as oil companies move equipment and workers to sites.  

“The whole of the northern Kenya is very active with oil exploration and the best way to access it is by air,” said Eutychus Waithaka, the chief executive of the Kenya Association of Aircraft Operators, citing poor or non-existent roads.

In other areas, insecurity poses a major risk for road transportation further increasing the appeal of air transport.

According to Mr Waithaka, the nature of exploration requires non-scheduled flights where companies charter aircraft and use them according to need.

Tullow, for instance, has signed a contract with DAC Aviation for use of its aircraft for all their transport needs. The contract had been previously awarded to Air Traffic Aviation.

“They come and audit your aircraft and also audit your crew before they give you the contract,” said Gad Kamau, the chief pilot at Boscovic Air Charter.

Mr Kamau says Boscovic has been doing three flights per day to Kapese Airstrip in Turkana, each with 40 passengers.

Lokichar gets three flights per week while Madogashu has been having a weekly flight of about 10 passengers. All these are new routes for the aviation company. 

READ: Oil attracts airlines to new airstrip in Lokichar

To improve accessibility by air, oil companies have created new airfields in the region and rehabilitated others.

“They have developed some very nice airfields, which have been made to the specifications and requirements of aircraft operators,” said Mr Kamau.

Aircraft operators hope the government will support these efforts and invest in improving the many poorly maintained airfields across the northern region.

“We have been holding talks with the ministry of Transport to set aside funds for maintenance of these airfields,” said Mr Waithaka.
  

Offshore exploration is set to further boost the demand for helicopters to access the rigs being set up in the Indian Ocean.

“Tourism has never recovered since the 2007 post-election violence, and the aviation industry has been forced to diversify its other areas of operation to stay afloat,” said Jamie Roberts, the owner of charter company Tropic Air.

The firm has ventured into southern Ethiopia, Congo and Uganda.

Aviators expect the demand for air services in the oil and gas industry to increase in the near future as exploration moves to the next stage of actual production.

The future looks good especially after commercial recoverable reserves of nearly one billion barrels were discovered in the mainly arid northern parts of Kenya.