Education
PETAN raises alarm over oil and gas brain drain, says Nigeria needs $6bn in equipment – EnviroNews
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The Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN) has raised the alarm over an escalating brain drain in the country’s oil and gas industry, warning that the recruitment of experienced Nigerian professionals by Qatar, Saudi Arabia and other oil-producing nations is creating critical skills gaps.
PETAN Chairman, Wole Ogunsanya, who raised the concern at a media roundtable organised by the association in Lagos on Monday, October 26, 2026, called on indigenous oil and gas companies to introduce aggressive training programmes to develop the next generation of industry professionals.
Ogunsanya, in a presentation titled “The State of Nigeria’s Oil and Gas Industry: Opportunities and Challenges,” said the departure of experienced personnel was threatening the industry’s ability to sustain operations and achieve its production ambitions.
“The best of our experienced Nigerians in the oil and gas industry are being recruited by Qatar, Saudi and others for their industry. This poaching is creating a huge gap that needs to be filled. It clearly shows that those countries too need them,” he said.
The PETAN chairman attributed part of the problem to the divestment of international oil companies (IOCs) from onshore assets in Nigeria, noting that the multinationals had historically played a significant role in training the country’s leading oil and gas professionals.
According to him, many of the industry’s most experienced personnel received their training and professional development while working with the IOCs.
“If you do a head count of top fliers in the industry, in every 10, about eight of them were once trained by the IOCs. Now that the multinationals are divesting, who takes charge?” he asked.
He urged indigenous companies acquiring divested assets to take responsibility for developing local talent by establishing comprehensive training and capacity-building programmes.
Ogunsanya challenged the new asset owners to demonstrate how they intended to replace the expertise historically developed by the international oil companies.
“What are the programmes that are being set up today by the buyers of divested assets by the IOCs to train people?” he queried.
He maintained that Nigeria had a substantial pool of potential talent capable of filling the emerging skills gap, stressing that the challenge was attracting young graduates into the petroleum industry and equipping them with the necessary technical expertise.
“The issue is not that we don’t have young graduates that can be in the oil and gas industry. The issue is how do we get these young graduates to come into the industry,” he said.
He noted that the country’s extensive university network provided a foundation for developing the workforce required to support the industry’s changing needs.
The PETAN chairman also highlighted equipment shortages and funding constraints as major obstacles to increasing oil production, estimating that Nigeria would require approximately $6 billion worth of equipment to support its production ambitions.
“We estimate that we need $6bn in equipment to handle million barrels production,” he said, emphasising the need for adequate investment in equipment and local technical capacity.
Despite these challenges, Ogunsanya expressed confidence in the capabilities of indigenous oilfield service companies, arguing that local firms had developed considerable expertise across the industry’s service value chain.
He said the growing capacity of PETAN members had reduced the need for some multinational service providers to enter the Nigerian market, as domestic companies could deliver quality services at competitive prices.
“We are providing services that are cheaper and of high quality,” he said.
Ogunsanya also commended the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) for supporting indigenous capacity development through its funding mechanisms for equipment acquisition.
He specifically cited the WalterSmith modular refinery as an example of the contribution of local content interventions to building domestic capacity in the petroleum sector.
The PETAN chairman’s concerns come as Nigeria’s oil and gas industry undergoes significant changes following the transfer of several assets from international oil companies to indigenous operators.
While the divestments have created opportunities for local companies to expand their participation in exploration, production and oilfield services, sustaining operations will require sufficient technical expertise, equipment and investment.
Ogunsanya warned that without a deliberate, industry-wide strategy to train young professionals and retain experienced personnel, Nigeria could struggle to develop its petroleum resources effectively.
He stressed that reversing the brain drain and strengthening local capacity would be essential to ensuring that indigenous companies could operate increasingly complex assets and deliver the country’s production targets.
