..Facility to boost research, cut reliance on foreign training in oil, gas sector

Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo), in partnership with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), has delivered a Geosciences Centre of Excellence at the University of Lagos, positioning it as a world-class learning and research hub in a critical sector of the economy.
The centre, commissioned on April 17, is a five-level structure equipped with state-of-the-art learning and research facilities, including laboratories for hydrogeology, mineralogy and environmental geology, as well as a seismic laboratory and interpretation room.

It also houses a library and digital museum, designed to support both undergraduate and postgraduate studies while reducing the Nigerian oil and gas industry’s reliance on international markets for testing, training and research.
Speaking at the ceremony, SNEPCo Managing Director, Ronald Adams, said the Centre represents a long-term investment in Nigeria’s greatest asset which is its people.

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by Commissioner for Tertiary Education, Tola Sule, said the building will create an environment where students don’t just learn by textbooks but by doing.
Chief Upstream Investment Officer of the NNPC Upstream Investment Management Services, Olanrewaju Igandan, described the handover of the Centre of Excellence as a testament to what can be achieved when industry, regulators and the academia work together with a shared vision for national development.

Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Felix Ogbe, who was represented at the ceremony by Director, Capacity Building, Abayomi Bamidele, said the success of the centre would be measured by it’s impact.
“The success of this centre will not be measured by its structure, but by its impact. The number of skilled graduates produced. The quality of research it generates. The solutions it provides to industry challenges.”

Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Folasade Ogunsola, outlined expectations for the facility,
“It will provide advanced analytical, interpretative, and research services that meet international standards as well as offer degree programmes, customised short courses, professional certifications, and executive training programmes tailored towards the needs of industry, government agencies, and international partners,” Ogunsola said.

The project, conceived in 2010, was executed by indigenous firm 225MM Construct Limited.
Students from the University of Lagos, Obafemi Awolowo University, University of Ilorin and Yaba College of Technology participated as interns during construction, gaining hands-on technical experience and exposure to project execution.

The centre marks the latest milestone in SNEPCo’s broader educational support initiatives, implemented in collaboration with its partners, including scholarships, donation of science laboratories to secondary schools nationwide, and the construction of e-learning centres in universities across Delta, Enugu, Edo and Bayelsa states.