By Godswill Odiong
The 11th Practical Nigerian Content (PNC) Forum will take place between 5-8 December 2022 in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
It is 11 years since the enactment of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development, NOGICD Act, and many strides have been made in developing domestic capacity that has spurred new business activity and retained wealth in the country.

For instance, in 2021, President Muhammadu Buhari launched the “Decade of Gas” which set the tone for Nigeria’s drive to harness the nation’s gas reserves, aiming to increase Nigeria’s utilization of gas for power, as well as emerging as a major gas exporter.
Drawing from this, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Wabote has announced the theme of the 11th Practical Nigerian Content Forum as ‘Deepening Nigerian Content Opportunities in The Decade of Gas’.
Industry leaders will continue the key discussions in Nigerian Content implementation strategies that will help create opportunities, and drive economic growth and investments in the energy sector. Additionally, it will devise strategies for business recovery and sustaining Nigerian Content in a post-pandemic environment, while businesses connect to foster economic growth and engage with government and industry players across the value chain. The event is important, especially as many eminent speakers have been lined up to make presentations.

Chief Timipre Sylva

H.E. Chief Timipre Marlin Sylva is the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. He was the Executive Governor of Bayelsa State of Nigeria for about 5 years. As Governor of one of the largest Oil Producing States in Nigeria, Sylva played a key role in the initiation and implementation of the Amnesty Programme that brought about peace and stability in the Niger Delta region.
In his current role as the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, he has clearly mapped out priority areas that include curbing petroleum products cross border leakages, completion of the Nigerian Gas Flare Commercialization Programme, increasing crude oil production to 3million barrels per day, reducing the current cost of crude oil production by at least 5 percent, aggressive promotion of the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill, promotion of inland basin exploration activities, and promotion of deep offshore exploration activities.
He serves as the Chairman of the Board of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and the President of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organization.

Engr. Simbi Wabote

Engr. Simbi K. Wabote was appointed as the Executive Secretary Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) in 2016. Prior to his appointment, he was an Executive Director of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) Nigeria Limited and the General Manager of Business and Government Relations for Shell Companies in Nigeria (SCiN).
Engr. Wabote joined Shell in September 1991 as an Oil and gas Engineer after a short stint with the Banking industry in Nigeria.
Prior to taking up his role as an Executive Director of Shell, he had served Shell in various senior positions within and outside the country in Engineering, Contracting & Procurement, External Affairs, and Community Affairs Directorates. He was responsible for the development of Royal Dutch Shell’s local content strategy and framework and supervised Shell Local Content implementation across several countries including Nigeria, Gabon, Brunei, Oman, Kazakhstan, Australia, Iraq, Qatar, Jordan, USA, and new frontier countries for Shell.

Mr. Osagie Okunbor

Managing Director, The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) and Country Chair of Shell Companies in Nigeria.
Osagie Okunbor was appointed the Managing Director of The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd. (SPDC) and Country Chair, of Shell Companies in Nigeria in 2015.
He has over 30 years of industry experience in Nigeria, the UK, Brunei, and the Netherlands.
His previous roles in the Shell Group include: Senior Adviser for Upstream International Operated Business; Vice President of Human Resources for Sub-Saharan Africa; Vice President for Infrastructure and Logistics in Nigeria; and Human Resources Director in Nigeria. He also chairs the Board of Shell Nigeria Pension Fund Administrators (SNCPFA) as well as All-On, a recently established off-grid energy entity.

Richard Laing

Richard Laing is the Chairman & Managing Director of ExxonMobil affiliate Companies in Nigeria – Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited, Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited, Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria (Offshore East) Limited.
He joined ExxonMobil in 1988 and worked in a variety of engineering, planning, safety, and managerial positions in Aberdeen, as well as in the United Kingdom.

Dr. Philip Mshelbila

Dr. Philip Mshelbila is currently the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria LNG Limited and the Vice President of Bonny Gas Transport.

Prior to this, he was the CEO of the Atlantic LNG Company of Trinidad & Tobago. He held the position of General Manager, Gas for Shell Nigeria, and a director of the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd (SPDC).
In the course of his over 25-year career with Shell, he has held various roles including Integration/Planning and Project Development Manager for Gas & Power, Commercial Manager, Private Assistant to the Chief Executive of Royal Dutch Shell in The Netherlands, Regional (Business) Adviser for Africa – Shell International and Regional Health Manager for Africa overseeing 36 countries.

Eberechukwu Oji

Eberechukwu Oji joined ND Western as Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (MD/CEO) in 2020.

He has over 25 years’ experience in the Oil and Gas sector.
Prior to joining ND Western, his Fields of experience included: Exploration and Production Oil and Gas accountability from Reservoir to Export Point operations as Chief Operating Officer (COO), Neconde Energy Limited, Upstream and Midstream Oil & Gas Senior executive leadership, Operations Management of Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) plant accountable for the 6 Train Operations, Regional Discipline Manager for Maintenance for Shell Companies in Nigeria and Gabon.
His fields of experience cover: Major Projects delivery, Front-end Field Development, Field Operations, Facility Maintenance, Well Intervention, Gas plant operations, Compressor station operations, Asset Management, New Business Development, Country Entry, Commercial Deal negotiation, Community Relations Management, and Government Relations management amongst others.

Mr. George Olutope Onafowokan

Mr. George Olutope Onafowokan is the Managing Director/CEO of Coleman Technical Industries Limited, manufacturers of the popular brand Coleman Wires & Cables. He was the immediate past chairman of the Electrical and Electronic Sector of the Manufacturers’ Association of Nigeria (MAN). He is currently on the EXCO of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI).
Through his leadership, the Company has grown to be an industry leader in the Cable manufacturing industry in Nigeria and West Africa.

Rosario Osobase

Rosario Osobase is a well-rounded professional with close to two decades of experience across several industries including banking, FMCG, and oil & gas, where she has over the years developed expertise in energy, leadership, commercial and business strategies, operations, public relations, and so on. She heads Tenaris Nigeria’s Commercial & Institutional businesses and is responsible for their strategic, commercial, and institutional agenda for Nigeria.

Rosario is a Director on the board of the Petroleum Contractors Trade Section (PCTS) and serves as the association’s Executive Secretary to drive industry-level synergies and advocacy that enables the strengthening of the Nigerian economy.
She is also very passionate about sustainable business strategies, corporate governance, and gender advocacy topics as well as educational advancement in her local community and in Nigeria as a whole.

Stella Duru

Stella Duru is a partner in the energy & natural resources practice group of Banwo & Ighodalo (B&I). She is a consummate professional with excellent mastery of the entire value chain of energy projects and almost twenty (20) years of cognate experience advising on a broad range of transactions including power, infrastructure, project finance, oil & gas, mergers & acquisitions, and corporate commercial transactions within the energy sector.
In the oil & gas sector, Stella she currently leads the team advising BlackRose Chemicals Limited in connection with the establishment of methanol to a liquefied natural gas facility in Akwa Ibom, Nigeria. She also leads the team advising Mulak Energy Limited in connection with the conceptualization, structuring, construction, and operation of a Gas Processing Plant in Nigeria.
Additionally, Stella leads the team advising Eko Petrochem and Refining Company Limited (EKPRC) in connection with the establishment of a forty thousand (40,000) barrels per day (“BPD”) hydroskimming plant and refinery to be financed by a mix of equity and debt capital. Stella is also part of the team confidentially advising major upstream players in the Nigerian petroleum industry on the divestment of major oil and gas assets from Nigeria.

Obehi Ojeaga

Obehi Ojeaga is currently the General Manager, Business Development and Corporate Affairs of Nigeria Machine Tools Limited; the leading indigenous Engineering, Industrial, and Manufacturer of machine tools and after-sales support provider in West Africa.
She has over 15 years of a broad spectrum of experience delivering growth, conceptualizing and implementing corporate strategies in FMCG, Telecommunications, and the Oil and Gas industries in the United Kingdom, Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria.

Comments/Discussions

The various presentations would be followed by comments and discussions, targeted at harnessing inputs for further enhancement of Local content and related issues in the nation’s oil and gas industry.