President Muhammadu Buhari, has applauded the N117 billion Oloibiri Museaum and Research Centre(OMRC), in Bayelsa State, saying, the groundbreaking of the project will correct historical oversights. The president made the comment on Tuesday at the event that attracted leaders of the Nigerian oil and industry who made firm commitment to the execution and sustenance of the project. Minister of state for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre, represented by Buhari,at Otuabagi, location of Shell’s Oil Well1 and of the museum project, declared: “by starting work on the Oloibiri Museum and Research Centre (OMRC), we have taken a giant step towards correcting a historical oversight by erecting a befitting monument at the exact ground of Oloibiri Oilfield where commercial quantities of oil were first discovered in Nigeria and production began in 1957.” The executive secretary, NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote explained what makes the present undertaking different from previous attempts, stating that, “key considerations that enabled us to get to this ceremony we are having today include: credible partnerships, funding model, governance framework, product offerings, project delivery, and long-term sustainability.” In his speech, the managing director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Dr. Samuel Ogbuku said, the NDDC would enhance the work of partners by constructing ‘a befitting access,’ a solid road from the state capital, to a monument of such magnitude. Group chief executive officer, The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mr. Kyari, pledged to provide sufficient support for the project, assuring, “we will do everything possible to support this…in NNPC Limited, we are determined to ensure value is returned to everyone, particularly where the value is created.” Apart from the OMRC, Buhari also performed the groundbreaking of the NCDMB Conference Hotel Project at Swali, adjacent to the Nigerian Content Tower. On the benefits of the 3-star Conference Hotel, Buhari said, it would “provide much-needed accommodation facilities to support the Board’s 1000-seater ultra-modern Conference Centre that regularly hosts thousands of participants at key oil and gas industry seminars, symposia, conferences, and workshops.” The NCDMB’s executive secretary, Engr. Simbi Wabote, explained that, the partnership on the project had worked effectively and efficiently “to deliver the project feasibility study, environmental impact assessment (EIA), geotechnical survey, site clearing, and the architectural design…..which reflects our desire to preserve the heritage of oil and gas in Nigeria and further enhance in-country research and development.”
