A call has been made for the adoption of local content in exploration of the abundant mineral resources in Nigeria. This call was made by a Professor of Petroleum Geology/Sedimentology, Peter Sunday Ola, while delivering his valedictory lecture marking his retirement from public service at the Federal University of Technology, Akure on Tuesday June 11th.
Professor Ola who spoke on the topic, “The Gains of Broken Nigeria’s Land Mass,” said “the Nigerian Local Content are crying silently and are making frantic efforts to change the situation in some universities. Unfortunately, with successive leadership leading to a change of vision, nothing tangible appears to be coming out of their efforts. The Chinese and non-Nigerians know far better than Nigerians, where you can get gold, lithium, and other valuable minerals in Nigeria. The mysteries behind this go beyond the understanding of our researchers in that field. The earlier Nigeria spends money on exploration for all her valuable minerals, the better. Except through divine intervention, only God can tell what Nigeria will lose by allowing International Oil Companies (IOC) to leave. Nigerians have less than 80% of the technology required for all aspects of our petroleum development.”
Chronicling the history of petroleum exploration and production in Nigeria and lamenting further the implications of the exit of International Oil Companies, IOC, the don said “hydrocarbon exploration started in Nigeria in 1908 by Shell D’Arcy. The First World War drove away the explorers. They returned in 1939 with a renewed effort that the Second World War thwarted. In 1946, immediately after the war, the explorers came back, this time with more sophisticated exploration facilities. Their efforts yielded no joyous discovery until 1956 when a discovery was made at Oloibiri. The biggest challenge facing Nigeria today in the oil industry is the exit of the IOC. Using the statistics of the number of indigenous companies that were given licenses for marginal oil field development in years 2021 and 2022 and the number that eventually saw the light of day, Nigeria has a long way to go. Nigeria is currently producing below her OPEC quota, which is usually based on the reserve of a member country, for some time now, Nigeria has stopped having reserve additions owing to her tragic lowering of exploration efforts. If nothing positive is done about exploration, Nigeria’s production quota may be reviewed downward as soon as possible.”
The lecturer, who served as Director of Technical Services, International Mining Investment Conference/Exhibition (IMICON) in Nigeria years back, called on FUTA to revisit the modus operandi of its Centre of Excellence in Geology and Geophysics which was intended for manpower development at post graduate level for people that could serve in the oil and gas industries. He added that as a way of addressing the slogan of “unemployable youth,” the need for thoroughly furnished professionals will soon increase as the businesses of exploration and production of oil and gas in Nigeria are becoming indigenized.
Speaking on the popular slogan ‘if you don’t publish, you perish’ which he described as Paradigm Paralysis, he said “only God knows the number of professors we have in the field that is electricity production, and many communities hardly have light for 20 hours a week”. Citing his experience, he said “less than 10% of the experiments I carried out and wrote papers on were performed using FUTA facility. My advice is that our universities should begin to look inward at using the brilliant ones among us and think of indigenous technology in their identified areas of strength.”
Professor Ola whose research efforts attracted a number of grants to the university emphasized the importance of bitumen exploration and its economic potentials to Nigeria, especially Ondo State with huge deposit of the resource. He said “one of the valuable minerals found today in the basin formed following that failed attempt to totally break Nigeria is bitumen. I foresee bitumen deposit development in Ondo State needing more time. A lot was invested into bitumen project by late Governor, Chief Adekunle Ajasin. Since that time, the government and people of Ondo State have been working and hope that foreigner will one day come with their magic and turn the bitumen deposits to gold. The earlier Ondo State spends money on workforce development in bitumen utilization, the better.
Presenting the lecturer to the audience, the Chairperson at the lecture and Vice Chancellor, Professor Adenike Oladiji described him as a veteran who has churned out productive men and women in his field. She said “with this valedictory lecture, Professor Ola has joined the class of FUTA’s Living Legend. Those are people who God has graciously allowed to clock the retirement age as professors and who have made significant impacts in their various fields.”
She described the lecture as a useful reference tool for upcoming academic and professionals in the field of Geology and related disciplines to adapt and emulate for successful sojourn in their future endeavours.
