As the oil and gas industry presents significant career opportunities for young Nigerians, particularly with the integration of advanced technologies such as machine learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI), Chibueze Marcellus Amadi, a geologist with years of experience in the sector, highlights the potential of the sector to Nigeria’s youthful population.
Why geology?
I’ve always loved the outdoors: especially hiking and exploring nature. Geology was one of the disciplines that afforded that sort of opportunity. I believe my parents also helped. My father was also a lover of nature. When I was in my adolescence, he would spend hours on end telling us about earthquakes and volcanoes. I remember, Krakatoa and Pompei were his favourite volcano stories. I always wondered, in those days, how nature could be our home and yet be so destructive.
Over time, I wanted to understand nature better and how the earth worked. So, my curiosity and love for nature and the outdoors led me towards geology. Interestingly, my mother wanted me to study medicine and my father engineering. But I wanted geology and went for it.
You have 15 years of experience in multinational energy companies. How did you attain this?
The bulk of my work in Shell and Petroleum Development Oman as a production seismologist/geologist has been to identify new opportunities – new oil and gas accumulations that is; quantify how much of it is in there and plan for safe extractions through oil/gas wells without compromising safety, cost or efficiency. Achieving this is really an integrated effort that requires several other disciplines and stakeholders. Therefore, effective stakeholder management both within and outside of the company is of paramount importance.
In my current role as a front-end development manager and Senior Production Seismologist in Petroleum Development Oman, I look for new near-infrastructure or near-field drilling opportunities in the Eastern Flank Area. This is a step-out from my comfort zone. I leverage the expertise of older and more experienced explorationists in the company to assess potential new opportunities and projects.
What are the prospects in oil and gas exploration?
On my own part, I have kept up to date with oil industry standards and technological advancements such as machine learning and Artificial Intelligence. What young people should know is that most hydrocarbon basins in the world today are old, mature; with mostly brown fields. It is easy to discover new opportunities in new fields with new technology, a little more difficult to discover new opportunities in old fields with new technology. But you can hardly discover new opportunities in old fields with old technology. Therefore, they can be innovative and implement recent technology in production geosciences. It has been indispensable to me in the identification of new oil and gas drilling opportunities and in value creation.
You are a strong advocate for knowledge sharing; how has that translated to coaching and mentoring young talents?
As an expatriate senior production geologist, a significant portion of my time is dedicated to capacity building – the technical development of young talents, a significant portion of which involves on the job coaching. For my mentees, I aim to simplify complex issues, breaking them down into fundamental and digestible components making it easier for them to assimilate. I do not believe in a top-down approach to mentorship. It is a two-way street. So, I give them the opportunity to innovate, allowing them the opportunity to contribute their own original ideas. I have learnt a lot from some of my mentees with whom I’ve collaborated with in several projects. In addition to accelerating their learning, this also helps to foster a strong sense of ownership and dependability.
Externally, I’ve been involved in sharing best practices and Learnings from Incidents. I’ve co-authored a few Technical Papers and Presentations, published in the journals of national and international professional bodies. For a couple of years from 2020 to 2023, I was a guest lecturer in the Geoscience Centre of Excellence in a Nigerian University, lecturing their postgraduate students on a few of their geoscience modules.
Can you share your career trajectory?
My career trajectory has been pretty much straightforward. I left the university in December, 2009, and was called for National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) six months later in 2010. At the end of my service in 2011, I was hired by Shell Nigeria as a production geologist in the technical directorate. I went for a brief assignment in the Middle East from 2016 to 2017 before returning to Shell Nigeria as senior production seismologist and quantitative interpreter until 2023, before leaving for Petroleum Development Oman as an expatriate on secondment.
What will you say is the height of your career?
My biggest achievement will remain coaching several much junior geologists, championing the technical development of the next generation of geoscientists and helping them build the necessary skills for the future. Watching them grow, excel in their work and ascend the corporate ladder has been a most rewarding experience, and it strengthens my commitment to grooming and mentoring talents in the industry.
What are your projections for your self-development and work in the next 10 years?
I have a passion for coaching and mentoring. I intend to get more involved in capacity building at energy industry conferences where I can share my knowledge, particularly with younger geoscientists, helping to nurture the growth of the next generation of professionals. In the longer term, I will get closer to academia in some coaching or lecturing capacity. I do believe I can make a lot of positive impact from the grassroots.
In the short and medium terms, I intend to leverage on the experience and network I gained in the Middle East to facilitate collaborative research effort, champion new opportunities and continue to keep pace with emerging trends in sustainability and new technologies such as machine learning and its application in production geosciences to improving exploration and field development efficiency and also pass such knowledge to.
You have come a long way since you were a hydrogeologist research intern at the Imo State Water Development Agency. What were the lessons you learnt during that period?
My internship in 2007 was my first time working in a formal setting. I remember such periods fondly as the days of little beginning that gave me the fundamental experience that helped shape my professionalism, work ethics and compliance. I learned the importance of punctuality, effective teamwork and collaboration in a team of professionals at the agency, with diverse ideas and cultural disposition. It was my introduction to conflict management and resolution in a professional setting. I learnt during this period that in life and at work, reasonable cooperation will get you farther than confrontation. Your attitude is as important, if not more, as your technical capacity.
Have you experienced any challenge and disappointment in your work, and how can young people navigate difficult times in their careers?
Of course, I’ve had setbacks. I’ve had some disappointing exploratory well results, significantly below expectation. Some of these failures led to significant value erosion and costly reassessment of project plans and value. I approached these disappointments with a learner mindset, facilitated collaborative post-mortem and after-action reviews and discussions with team members to learn and understand the reasons for failure and ensure they don’t repeat.
Overall, my career has been an interesting but rewarding challenge. My current role double-hatting as a front-end development project manager and senior production geologist has been a very steep learning curve. However, every young person trying to find a career path should first consider challenges and difficult times to be a propeller for both mental and physical drive to deliver and improve on problem-solving skills.
Join Daily Trust WhatsApp Community For Quick Access To News and Happenings Around You.
