Ogbe hints at continuity at NCDMB, charges staff on high performance
Sopuruchi Onwuka
The high anxiety that gripped the Nigerian upstream petroleum players over the sudden replacement of the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has been dispelled by the new helmsman, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, who has lauded the achievements recorded by the agency.
Engr. Ogbe who held his first official meeting with the Directors and management of the NCDMB pointed at human capacity development programme which had produced Nigerians who now provide high-tech services in other African oil-producing countries.
The Oracle Today reports that the NCDMB recorded monumental leap during the seven and half years of Engr Simbi Wabote at the helms, pushing Nigerian Content of the $20 billion annual upstream petroleum industry spend to over 54 percent as indigenous service firms are encouraged to displace multinational service providers.
Engr Ogbe who was appointed by President Bola Tinubu to replace Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote, lauded the achievements recorded by the agency during a high-level briefing on the Board’s projects and initiatives from the Directors and senior management at the NCDMB’s Abuja liaison office.
Engr Wabote was appointed by past President Muhammadu Buhari who ousted Mr Denzel Kentebe earlier appointed by former President Goodluck Jonathan.
Commenting on the Nigerian Content 10-year strategic roadmap which had recorded 54 percent achievement in the 6th year of implementation, Ogbe announced that expert consultants would be invited to certify the performance and metrics, to give it more authenticity.
He charged senior officials of the Board to continue delivering high performance in their various roles, to sustain the Board’s premium position. He also indicated the need for the Board to carryout sensitization programmes to key stakeholders in cities across Nigeria on the opportunities created by the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act.
Ogbe also harped on the need for the Board to work closely with its contractors to speed up the delivery of its direct projects such as the Nigerian Oil and Gas Parks Scheme, to realize their objectives for the economy.
The new Executive Secretary hails from Warri South in Delta State and is a vastly experienced oil and gas engineer and holds separate Masters Degrees in Civil Engineering and Construction Management.
He has over 37 years of experience in core oil and gas operations in Nigeria and local content operations, notably onshore and offshore, LNG, Water Drilling, Treatment and Storage Facilities, Civil, Building & Dredging Engineering, and other construction.
His experiences were garnered in Nigeria, across Africa, Busan, South Korea and USA, where he worked in the Conceptions, Engineering Designs, Project and Construction Management to Commissioning Phases of projects.
His work experiences include Chevron Corporation, where he held top positions in Nigeria and overseas, before he retired voluntarily in June 2014, to go into private business.
While at Chevron Nigeria Limited, he served as Construction Services Group Superintendent (Escravos-Warri) and was responsible for in-house construction services requirements to support the Company Operations.
He equally served as Offshore Projects Manager, where he was responsible for all the Engineering designs, Planning and execution of Maintenance works and installation of new facilities to support productions in Chevron Nigeria Limited offshore locations.
Other assignments he held in Chevron includedonstruction Manager (Lagos & Escravos-Warri), Escravos Gas Project (EGP-3B), where he was responsible for the fabrication and installation of various sizes of pipelines/flowlines in offshore and onshore locations in the Niger Delta.
In his early years, he served as Construction Superintendent responsible for Engineering Designs and Construction requirements, and also worked as the Cost Control Engineer and was responsible for all Facility Engineering Division Projects’ cost controls, budgeting and cash calls.
Ogbe is a member of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Council of Registered Engineers, and American Institute of Civil Engineers, and is married with children.
