The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, through its Research, Technology and Innovation (RTI) Division, in partnership with the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Sonatrach, the Algerian National Oil Company, to enhance cooperation in research, development, and innovation.
The agreement was signed by NNPC Ltd’s Executive Vice President, Business Services, Sophia Mbakwe, and Sonatrach’s Managing Director, Khodjah Mohamed. It establishes a formal framework for joint research and technology exchange between the two national oil companies.
The signing took place during the opening ceremony of the 3rd meeting of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (APPO) Forum for R&D Directors at the PTDF Tower in Abuja, Nigeria. The event brought together research and development directors from APPO member countries.
Government Support and Strategic Importance
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, represented by former Secretary General of APPO, Omar Farouk Ibrahim, noted that the forum is one of four measures introduced by APPO to address challenges from the global energy transition, which revolve around funding, technology, and markets.
“The R&D forum tackles technology and expertise needs, the African Energy Bank addresses funding constraints, and the Central African Pipeline System supports regional oil and gas market integration,” Lokpobiri stated.
NNPC CEO Calls for R&D as Central Strategy
Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, Engr. Bashir Bayo Ojulari, represented by the company’s Chief Financial Officer, Adedapo Segun, emphasized that research and development must be a central part of the overall strategy in the African oil and gas industry. He called for R&D centers to function as engines of industrial competitiveness.
“Collaboration in research and development is of strategic importance. The cost of innovation might be high, but the cost of obsolescence would be greater,” he stressed.
Ojulari advocated for a unified strategic framework through which resources could be pooled, data integrated, and risks shared across member countries. He further urged the rapid adoption of digital technologies, artificial intelligence, and advanced engineering to improve upstream, midstream, and downstream operations.
APPO Secretary General Emphasizes Practical Solutions
The APPO Secretary General, Farid Ghezali, urged African petroleum producing countries to ensure that research in the oil and gas sector yields practical solutions directly relevant to the continent.
“We must ensure that our research delivers solutions that are practical and of direct use to Africa,” he stated.
PTDF Highlights Decarbonisation Efforts
Executive Secretary of the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), Prof. Shu’aibu Shehu Aliyu, highlighted the value of the partnership between NNPC Limited and PTDF in supporting decarbonisation and environmental protection work across APPO member countries.
Focus Areas for Innovation
Chief Innovation Officer of NNPC Research, Technology and Innovation and incoming Chairman of the APPO R&D Directors Forum, Rasheed Ojulari, said the forum would give immediate priority to joint programmes in core areas such as upstream optimisation, artificial intelligence, decarbonisation processes, and industrial systems development.
