Workers from neighbor nations flourish at Sinopec

Indians, Pakistanis, Nepalese, among employees enjoying employment benefits

Khalid Mahmood Sultan, a Pakistani employee of Sinopec Oilfield Service Corporation, recently paid 200,000 yuan ($29,048) to decorate his new house.

"There was no need for a bank loan because with my salary here I could afford it," he said.

Back in 2003, Khalild signed a long-term contract with Sinopec Oilfield, a subsidiary of China's oil and gas giant Sinopec Group, to be an assistant supervisor surveyor. Prior to that job, he was a building surveyor in his hometown, where he only made ends meet.

"I felt lucky to find a job here", he said. "Life became better. And they gave respect and value to my work."

In 2009, Sinopec Oilfield launched a geophysical exploration project in Saudi Arabia with local petroleum company Saudi Arabian Aramco Oil Co. The first phase of the project was finished in 2015 and the second is expected to be completed in 2018.

"I want to send my three children to China to learn Chinese and the advanced technology there," Khild said.

He said he heard Sinopec also launched a marine exploration project in Pakistan.

"China is a big and responsible country. It's developing fast and influencing the world economy, especially that along the Belt and Road Initiative," he said. "Many countries will benefit from it."

Kiribati Abdusamad, a GPS operator from Bangladesh, said he planned to use the money he earned to open a mid-sized supermarket after returning home.

Two Indian employees, Kuhle Nawab khan and Elvine Maisar Ali, said they wanted to run a mobile phone store in India when their contracts expired.

Li Hanguang, deputy Party chief of the earthquake team in the project, said they provided opportunities for employees to expand their skills.

Training courses include driving, operating drilling machines, vehicle maintenance and computer software, he said.

Haris Bahadur, a cable repairman from Nepal, after getting trained in equipment maintenance, was promoted from a front-line worker to a group leader.

An Indian repairman, who worked at Sinopec for three years, was appointed by a major vehicle maintenance company in his hometown. And a Nepalese driver, after completing work in the construction team, found a job in eastern Saudi Arabia to fetch children after school, according to Li.

Zhao Peiye, production director of the project, said the construction team had hired more than 1,000 foreign employees from 17 countries since 2009.

He said the company held many entertaining activities, including football matches volleyball matches, tug-of-war events and dances to ease the stress of working in the desert.

In Chinese Lunar New Year, Chinese and foreign employees made dumplings and hung out lanterns. And during the Muslim Corban Festival, they would have a big dinner and dance at night, Zhao said.

chenmeiling@chinadaily.com.cn