The Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) and Oida Energy Limited have signed a landmark memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish Nigeria’s first in-country oilfield-shaped charge manufacturing facility.
The deal is a major step toward strengthening local capacity and advancing the government’s industrialisation agenda.

The agreement represents a strategic move by the technical units of Nigeria’s military towards collaboration with the private sector in addressing operational challenges in the petroleum industry.
Officials said the partnership is a significant stride in deepening local content, enhancing national security and reducing reliance on imported explosive technologies for oilfield operations.

The signing ceremony was witnessed by representatives of the Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Gbenga Komolafe; the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu; officials of DICON and Oida Energy.

Director General of DICON, Major General Babatunde Ibrahim Alaya, described the pact as a decisive move towards building indigenous capacity in sensitive and strategic technologies.

He said the facility would deliver safe, reliable and locally-manufactured shaped charges for upstream petroleum operations while creating jobs, enabling technology transfer and conserving foreign exchange.

Oida Energy, known across Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and Asia for delivering value-added oilfield solutions, is bringing its technical expertise to the collaboration.

According to both parties, the partnership was facilitated by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), which played a critical enabling role in aligning the initiative with Nigeria’s local content policy and industrialisation goals.

They noted that the MoU demonstrates the value of collaboration among government institutions, regulators and the private sector in advancing national industrialisation and self-reliance in critical energy and defence technologies.

Managing Director of Oida Energy, Emeka Ene, reaffirmed the company’s “commitment to delivering world-class local manufacturing solutions that will strengthen Nigeria’s energy and security value chains”.