National oil companies will face a severe talent shortage unless substantial investment is made in new training and development programmes, it has been warned.

According to Arif Mahmood, vice-president of corporate strategy planning at Petronas, the shortage could potentially put the brakes on growth in the global oil and gas industry.

Bernama reports that Mr Mahmood told an audience in Kuala Lumpur that national oil companies will need to invest $5 trillion in new projects and technology over the next 25 years, citing International Energy Agency figures.

By 2012, more than 400 major new projects are set to come on stream, while 180 offshore rigs will also be built.

For each rig, national oil companies will need to train around 200 workers, Mr Mahmood warned, and went on to call for extensive investment in education programmes to ensure such expansion can move ahead safely and on schedule.

To support its development, Petronas has established its own university and has to date trained more than 20,000 workers.

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