At a moment when Nigeria's oil industry is transferring ownership from international giants to indigenous hands, Oando Energy Resources has opened a 12-month drilling engineering programme in Port Harcourt — a quiet but consequential act of nation-building. The initiative, forged in partnership with NCDMB and Hilong, asks a generation of young Nigerians to inherit not just the machinery of extraction, but the knowledge and responsibility that sustain it. It is a recognition that sovereignty over resources means little without sovereignty over the expertise to manage them.
Oando launches 12-month drilling engineering programme for young Nigerians
Indigenous companies need Nigerians with expertise to operate assets independently
Mark
Why does Nigeria need this programme right now? Couldn't they just hire experienced people from abroad?
Mimi
The industry is shifting. Indigenous Nigerian companies are taking over assets that international companies used to run. Those international companies brought their own people. Now Nigeria needs Nigerians with the expertise to operate these assets independently.
Luke
That's the stated reason. But how many jobs actually exist for these 200-odd trainees after they finish? The source doesn't say.
Mark
What makes this different from other training programmes?
Mimi
It's tied to actual oilfield operations. Participants aren't just sitting in a classroom—they're getting hands-on experience in a real working environment. That's the bridge between theory and practice.
Luke
That's a significant advantage, yes. Though the source doesn't specify how much time is classroom versus field, or which oilfield operations they'll actually access.
Mark
Who exactly is being trained here?
Mimi
Young Nigerians, with particular emphasis on people from host communities—the regions where oil and gas operations happen. The idea is that these communities should benefit directly from the industry's presence.
Luke
The source says "young Nigerians, particularly those from host communities," but doesn't give enrollment numbers, age ranges, or how many are actually from host communities versus elsewhere.
Mark
What's the business case for Oando? Why invest in this?
Mimi
They're positioning themselves as a responsible operator in an industry that's increasingly under scrutiny. They're also building relationships with the communities where they work. And practically, they need skilled workers.
Luke
All true. But the source doesn't say whether Oando is committing to hire graduates, or whether this is purely a goodwill initiative with no employment guarantee.
Mark
Is this solving a real problem or just optics?
Mimi
The knowledge transfer problem is real. Experienced professionals are leaving, and Nigeria needs to retain technical capacity as it takes control of its own assets. That's not optics—that's infrastructure.
Luke
The problem is real. Whether this 12-month programme actually solves it depends on scale and follow-through. The source doesn't tell us how many people Nigeria needs, how many this programme trains, or what happens to graduates afterward.
Il Polso
- Nigeria's oil sector faces a critical skills vacuum as international companies exit and indigenous operators take over assets they may lack the technical workforce to run safely.
- Experienced professionals trained under decades of foreign company dominance are aging out of the industry, threatening to take irreplaceable operational knowledge with them.
- Oando, NCDMB, and Hilong have joined forces to deliver a rigorous 12-month curriculum blending classroom theory with live oilfield exposure — from well planning to rig operations to data analytics.
- The programme deliberately targets young Nigerians from host communities, the very regions where extraction happens but whose residents have historically seen the fewest benefits.
- Beyond technical drilling skills, trainees receive instruction in entrepreneurship and digital competencies, positioning them for opportunity across the entire energy value chain, not just a single role on a rig.
At a moment when Nigeria's oil industry is transferring ownership from international giants to indigenous hands, Oando Energy Resources has opened a 12-month drilling engineering programme in Port Harcourt — a quiet but consequential act of nation-building. The initiative, forged in partnership with NCDMB and Hilong, asks a generation of young Nigerians to inherit not just the machinery of extraction, but the knowledge and responsibility that sustain it. It is a recognition that sovereignty over resources means little without sovereignty over the expertise to manage them.
On September 4, 2026, Oando Energy Resources opened a 12-month drilling engineering training programme in Port Harcourt, developed alongside the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board and Hilong Oil Service & Engineering Nigeria Limited. The initiative arrives at a pivotal moment: Nigeria's petroleum industry is shifting from international company control toward indigenous ownership, and that transition demands a generation of Nigerian professionals equipped to manage complex oilfield operations from the inside.
The curriculum is both technical and expansive. Participants move through drilling engineering fundamentals, well planning and design, measurement and logging while drilling, rig operations, and well-log data analytics. Alongside these specialised skills, the programme weaves in entrepreneurship, business management, and digital literacy — a deliberate choice to prepare trainees for the broader energy economy, not merely a single job on a rig.
The urgency behind the programme is real. As veteran professionals — many shaped by the era of international company dominance — gradually leave the sector, Nigeria risks losing the accumulated technical knowledge that keeps its oilfields running. Oando's Deji Agboola framed the moment plainly for participants: this is a chance to contribute to Nigeria's oil and gas industry at a genuinely critical juncture.
The three-way partnership is also a statement about equity. By prioritising young people from host communities — the regions where extraction actually occurs — the programme attempts to redirect the benefits of Nigeria's petroleum wealth toward those who have long lived closest to its operations. As NCDMB's Alexis Emelle noted, the collaboration is an investment not only in individual participants, but in the future of the sector itself. Technical sovereignty, the initiative suggests, is the foundation on which resource sovereignty must be built.
On September 4, 2026, in Port Harcourt, Oando Energy Resources Nigeria Limited opened the doors to a 12-month drilling engineering training programme designed to prepare young Nigerians for work in the country's oil and gas sector. The initiative, developed in partnership with the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board and Hilong Oil Service & Engineering Nigeria Limited, represents a deliberate effort to build technical capacity at a moment when Nigeria's petroleum industry is undergoing fundamental structural change.
The programme combines classroom instruction with hands-on training tied to actual oilfield operations, giving participants direct exposure to the practical realities of drilling and petroleum work. The curriculum covers specific technical domains: Basic Drilling Engineering Operations, Well Planning and Design, Measurement While Drilling, Logging While Drilling, drilling rig operations, and well-log data analytics. Beyond technical training, the programme also includes instruction in entrepreneurship, business management, and digital skills—a deliberate broadening meant to open pathways across the wider energy value chain, not just within drilling itself.
The timing of this initiative reflects a structural shift in Nigeria's oil industry. For decades, international oil companies held primary ownership and operational control of most major assets. That arrangement is changing. Indigenous Nigerian companies are increasingly taking over these operations, which creates both an opportunity and a challenge: the country now needs Nigerian professionals with the specialized expertise to run these assets safely and efficiently. Deji Agboola, Manager of the Nigerian Content Division at Oando Energy Resources, framed the opportunity directly to participants: the training gives them a chance to contribute meaningfully to the development of Nigeria's oil and gas industry at a critical juncture.
The programme also addresses a looming workforce challenge. As experienced professionals—many of them trained during the era of international company dominance—gradually leave the industry, Nigeria risks losing accumulated technical knowledge. Knowledge transfer and succession planning have become critical concerns for sustaining the sector's operational capacity. This training initiative is designed partly to bridge that gap, ensuring that a new generation of Nigerian professionals can step into roles that demand both theoretical understanding and practical competence.
Oando positioned the programme as part of its broader commitment to developing Nigerian technical talent while creating specific pathways for young people from host communities—the regions where oil and gas operations actually take place. Alexis Emelle, representing the Executive Secretary of NCDMB as the Board's General Manager for Human Capacity Development, described the collaboration as an investment in both the participants and the future of Nigeria's petroleum sector. The three-way partnership between Oando, NCDMB, and Hilong is intended to expose trainees to the operational environment while narrowing the gap between what they learn in the classroom and what they will actually encounter on a rig or in a control room.
The programme also aligns with the broader Nigerian Content objective: ensuring that communities and Nigerians derive greater value from oil and gas activities through access to skills, employment, and opportunities across the energy value chain. In other words, the training is not merely about filling technical positions—it is about ensuring that the benefits of Nigeria's petroleum resources flow more directly to Nigerians themselves, particularly those in the regions where extraction occurs. As indigenous companies assume greater control of Nigeria's oil assets, initiatives like this one become essential infrastructure for making that transition work.
Citazioni salienti
Being here equips you with the capacity to contribute meaningfully to the future of the oil and gas industry, as well as the country— Deji Agboola, Manager of Nigerian Content Division, Oando Energy Resources
An investment in the participants and the future of Nigeria's oil and gas industry— Alexis Emelle, General Manager of Human Capacity Development, NCDMB
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