The Federal Government has awarded Phase-1 of the Engineering, Procurement & Construction contract for the Oloibiri Museum and Research Centre (OMRC) in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, sixty-six years after Shell discovered crude oil in commercial quantities at Oloibiri, Bayelsa State.
With a 30-month completion window, Julius Berger Nigeria Plc was given the contract.
Yesterday, February 8, during a meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, the scope of construction, which would include a museum of masterpieces and a research center, was further approved.
This is anticipated to fill a significant vacuum in the country’s search for domestically produced technology inputs necessary to support exploration and production tasks in the Nigerian oil and gas industry.
OMRC’s establishment has been in the conceptual stage for more than 30 years, and its failure to move forward to the construction stage is seen as a historical oversight because a working museum and research center, as is the case in other oil-producing countries, would preserve the history and advancements in the oil and gas industry.
The Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC), and the Bayelsa State Government are listed as the project’s four development partners (BYSG).
Each organization would donate 40, 30, and 10 percent in turn to the construction of the monument.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, officially launched the project team for the symbolic project in August 2020. At that time, important project committees were established, and delivery deadlines were established.
The project has been approved as one of President Buhari’s signature initiatives that will influence the oil and gas industry, the Niger Delta’s residents, and the entire country.
