Rita Enemuru, Reporting
THE Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) has taken a significant step toward bridging the gap between academia and industry, following a high-level facility inspection and partnership discussion with Oida Energy Nigeria.
During a visit to the institute’s campus on Tuesday, the Principal and Chief Executive of PTI, Engr Dr Samuel Onoji—represented by the Director of Engineering, Dr Ahmed Adamu—welcomed the collaboration as a timely development.
He noted that the visit marked a follow-up to the initial signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU), which will pave the way for a new curriculum tailored to industry needs.
“The coming of the Oida team is a welcome development,” Dr Adamu said. “This is a follow-up to the signing of the first stage of the MoU, which will precede the development of the curriculum. The available facilities here will serve students and trainees well.”
Speaking on behalf of Oida Energy, the Strategic Business Unit Manager, Engr Chuks Echem, revealed that the partnership is centred on a well intervention programme—an area identified as a critical skills gap in the sector.
“We are currently partnering with PTI on a well intervention programme, which we identified as a gap that we need to fill,” Mr Echem explained. “This is our third visit to PTI. We have been discussing this for about three months. Today, we are at the stage of touring and assessing the facilities, and so far, so good—we are impressed with what we are seeing.”
When asked to rate the facilities, he added: “On a scale of one to ten, I will give PTI eight. We are very impressed with what we see here.”
Mr Echem, who led a delegation of five unit heads to the institute on Tuesday, said the discussions were now in their final stages. He emphasised that a joint committee would soon be established to finalise details before formal approval.
“We are discussing curriculum formation, which is actually the foundation. Once this is done and agreed upon, that will decide how we can come in and what we can bring to the table. We hope that in a month’s time, things will begin to take shape. That is the mandate from us.”
Echoing the significance of the collaboration, Dr Mrs Sarah Nwinee, Head of the Linkages, Exchange and Partnership Unit at PTI, who led other management team on the tour, described the initiative as a model of the ‘triple helix’ approach—bringing together government, industry and academia to drive innovation.
“It is very important that we bridge the gap between theory and practice,” Dr Nwinee said. “We are dealing with core industry specialists in the area of well intervention. We have the theoretical background and we have the facilities. When you bring government, industry and academia together, innovations happen. That is why we are coming together to float this programme, to deepen capacity in-country for the Nigerian oil and gas industry.”
She noted that Oida Energy was chosen for its proven expertise, adding: “In the area of well intervention, Oida has capacity—one of the best in the industry in this country. That is the reason we signed the MoU with them. They came for proper facility inspection, and they are satisfied. We are also satisfied. Now we can take the next step of curriculum development, blending different minds to advance the industry.”
Dr Nwinee also called on the nation to take pride in the institute’s legacy, stating: “Nigeria should have faith in PTI; it is the true story of local content. There is no way Nigeria would have been part of OPEC without PTI. Nigeria needed to have a petroleum training institute before it could join OPEC—that is why PTI was established. Over 50 years on, PTI has been living up to expectations in terms of building requisite capacity for the Nigerian oil and gas industry.”
With both parties expressing optimism, the partnership is expected to move swiftly towards final approval, with the new curriculum and training modules anticipated to take shape within the coming month.
