A seven-member delegation, including a Minister and senior officials, from Ethiopia visited the CSIR-Indian Institute of Petroleum here on Friday. The delegation had arrived with the aim of signing a twinning programme for training and mentoring Ethiopian scientists, students and industry professionals in the energy and fuels area at the CSIR-IIP.
An Ethiopian delegation comprising State Minister Alemu Sime from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, General Director of Chemical and Construction Inputs Industry Development Institute (CCIIDI), Samuel Halala, Deputy-General Director of CCIIDI Hadushom Tuem, steering committee representative from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Sefora Hailu, steering committee members at CCIIDI Tesfaye Birhanu and Tetemke Mehari along with director of the testing ad research directorate at Addis Ababa, Muhiye Endrie the institute here on Friday.
According to IIP officials, the training programmes to facilitate which the delegation had arrived, are envisioned to be carried out there, here or remotely via Skype. The CCIDI is expected to be the IIP’s partner there. CSIR-IIP can also offer its talent pool as consultants for industry-specific problems in Ethiopia and also partner in projects with them over there.
After a visit to the various laboratories of the institute, the delegation held a side-ranging discussion with the scientific officials of the institute including the acting director AK Jain and other senior scientists on the on-going research activity at the CSIR-IIP:
The delegation visited the hydroprocessing laboratory, FCC pilot plant, sweetening pilot plant, advanced crude evaluation laboratory, bio-mass conversion laboratory, nanocatalysis laboratory, conversion of waste plastics laboratory and the synthetic and applied chemistry laboratory.
The institute officials further informed that the delegation expressed interest in bio-mass conversion, waste plastics conversion as well as in training programmes being conducted by the CSIR-IIP.