There are few individuals in the field of petroleum engineering, subsurface and development who possess the expertise and passion for growth that Samson Ibukun embodies. With over 20 years of experience in the oil and gas industry, Ibukun has distinguished himself as a leading authority in his field. His expertise spans petroleum engineering, subsurface integration, risk management, modelling, and more, delivering immense value to stakeholders in both conventional and deepwater oil and gas assets.
Ibukun’s career journey includes roles as a consultant in the oil field services industry and as a current employee of Shell PLC, the second-largest international oil company by revenue. Over the past two decades, he has worked in various technical and leadership roles across Africa and the Gulf of Mexico. His achievements and numerous awards highlight his deep technical knowledge and commercial insight in petroleum engineering, integrated reservoir modelling, and hydrocarbon recovery.
It was early in his career as a consultant with Laser Engineering & Resources Consultant Limited that he honed his technical expertise in petroleum engineering and subsurface integration. He quickly rose to lead the Reservoir Management & Studies division, guiding a multidisciplinary team in executing complex petroleum engineering and reservoir studies across major Nigerian oil and gas assets. His innovative methods in reservoir fluids characterization and pressure transient analysis contributed significantly to the recovery of hydrocarbons in the region.
Currently, Ibukun serves as the Senior Reservoir Engineer and Development Planner for Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo). In this role, he has played a pivotal role in advancing Shell’s Deepwater business in Nigeria. Shell was a pioneer in deepwater oil and gas production in Africa’s Gulf of Guinea, particularly with the successful Bonga Main field, which has produced over 1 billion barrels of oil since 2005. Ibukun is responsible for the technical integration of key projects, managing the costs, risks, and uncertainties to ensure value creation and growth throughout the lifecycle of these initiatives. His work spans multiple disciplines, including subsurface, wells, subsea, and topsides, with the collective value of the projects exceeding $12 billion.
As Lead Reservoir Engineer for a major Shell deepwater project in 2016, Ibukun optimized subsurface targets, leading to a $250 million cost saving by eliminating two drill centres without affecting recoverable hydrocarbon volumes. In 2019, he spearheaded cost improvement efforts for another major project, identifying over $488 million in savings and contributing to the achievement of best-in-class unit development costs. In 2022, he delivered the field development plan for the Bonga North Infill project, which enables addition up to 24,000 barrels of oil per day to the Bonga facility by accelerating subsea tie-backs of three producer-injector well pairs.
Ibukun’s exceptional contributions have earned him numerous honours. In 2024, he received the Shell Senior Vice President’s Maximizing Our Performance Award for his crucial role in delivering 40,000 additional barrels of oil per day and 80 million stock-tank barrels of new oil to the Bonga FPSO. His efforts helped reduce the field’s production decline by 50% over the next four years.
In addition to his technical prowess, Ibukun is an accredited Front-End Development Manager at Shell. His career serves as a testament to his dedication to excellence and his substantial influence on the future of Nigeria’s oil and gas sector. Ibukun holds a BSc and MSc in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and is an active member of several professional organizations, including the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) and the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE).
Ibukun’s journey underscores his status as one of the leading figures in petroleum engineering, subsurface integration, and field development planning, with his expertise shaping the future of the oil and gas industry in Nigeria and beyond.
