Nigeria’s oil and gas industry is facing a growing shortage of experienced technical professionals that could undermine the execution of major deepwater projects now moving toward development.
Industry stakeholders raised the concern at the Oil and Gas Trainers Association of Nigeria Human Capacity Development Conference in Delta State.
Representatives of the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria, Oil Producers Trade Section, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, OGTAN and other industry organizations said years of weak investment had created gaps in the technical workforce.
Nigeria’s upstream industry has recently attracted renewed investment after a prolonged period of declining activity.
Projects already under execution include Shell’s Bonga North and HI developments, TotalEnergies’ Ubeta project and ExxonMobil affiliate Esso’s Usan infill project.
Several larger deepwater developments are also approaching final investment decisions, including Bonga Southwest Aparo, Zabazaba and Etan, Owowo and the IMA project.
Stakeholders warned that the rebound in capital spending had exposed a serious question about whether the country had enough skilled professionals to deliver the projects.
PETAN Chairman Wole Ogunsanya said the most severe shortage was not among fresh graduates but among experienced mid career specialists.
He said Nigeria was losing drilling engineers, completions specialists, remotely operated vehicle supervisors, instrumentation leads and other professionals with 10 to 15 years of experience to international markets.
Ogunsanya said companies could win contracts but still struggle to find the right people to execute them.
He also identified a gap between academic qualifications and practical competence, citing limited simulator access, supervised field experience and original equipment manufacturer training.
PETAN said the next generation of oil and gas contracts would increasingly involve automation, artificial intelligence and digital systems.
Ogunsanya warned that Nigeria risked localizing older services while continuing to import expertise for newer technologies if multiple skills gaps were not addressed together.
He proposed that structured placements with indigenous service companies should count as certified training and that more Nigerian Content Human Capital Development funds should be directed to accredited local programmes.
NCDMB Executive Secretary Felix Ogbe said the long wait for major final investment decisions had constrained local workforce development.
He said Nigeria had effectively lost almost 15 years of investment, leaving an entire generation of graduates without enough practical industry exposure.
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Oil Heineken Lokpobiri said the government was committed to rebuilding capacity through NCDMB and the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development framework.
He warned, however, that investment could arrive faster than the workforce required to execute it.
OGTAN President Chris Osarunmwense presented an eight pillar workforce development manifesto covering skills forecasting, trainer certification, human capital funding and stronger local training capacity.
The association also plans a quarterly Training Managers Forum for upstream companies.
Stakeholders said the workforce issue had become increasingly urgent as Nigeria targets crude oil production of three million barrels per day by 2030.
