Faith Iroham, the founder and chief executive of Gove Energy, began her career with the defunct Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) – now Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
The vibrant Gove Energy has an exploration team whose members have well over two decades of both international and local exploration, development, and production experience.
Having consulted for a number of companies on subsurface gas studies and prticipated in resolving associated subsurface structural and stratigraphic complexities for Platform Oil/Newcross JV in OML 38, Gove Energy played a key role in the pre-Bima prospect ranking of Chad Basin among several other notable projects.
While Gove Energy is a corporate member of WIEN and NAPE, its founder, Faith, holds a Master’s degree from the University of Lagos, and she is a Fellow of the Institute of Corporate and Public Administrators of Nigeria (FCPAN), as well as a Fellow in the Institute of Oil and Gas Research and Hydrocarbon Studies (FIGOR).
Excerpts of her interview with Majorwaves:
Q. Are there current technologies that make exploration easier and less expensive?
Yes: It is called Controlled Source Electro Magnetics (CSEM). This is used for early but shallow detection of hydrocarbon in the ground before commencing exploration drill. It also helps to reduce risk of exploration failure, fund wasting and drilling of dry holes.
Q. What’s your advice for new marginal field owners as regards the best approach in order to stay in business?
Congratulations to all our Marginal Field awardees. It takes finance, team work, great effort, and processes to win a Marginal field. That’s an opportunity I trust they would carefully utilize.
Marginal Field owners need indefatigable, strategic business governance, and approach that ensures accountability, ranging from financial expenditure, team work, partnership, management, and choice of workforce to ensure long-term operations, sustainability and profit.
Q. What are some of your service offerings they can take advantage of?
Geophysical and Geological Studies – 3D/4D Seismic Data Acquisition, Interpretation, Processing and Reprocessing, Exploration and Prospect Maturation, Drill Queue Generation through Exploration, Biostratigraphic Studies, Portfolio Optimization, Risk Assessment & Optimization, FDP, Fault seal analysis, Fracture gradients, AVO Inversion (Geo Mechanics) and Reservoir studies.
Q. Against the backdrop of oil theft and infrastructural challenges, there is still the need to evacuate liquids, what innovative approach would you suggest for operators in the industry?
Gove Energy has a virile, and strategic technology to eradicate oil theft in terms of trunk lines vandalism across locations.
We have a modified method for Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) and two other methods which are proprietary and only disclosed during technical presentation.
Q. What opportunities do you see for exploration and development activities following the Petroleum Industry Act -PIA?
Thanks to this current administration for signing the PIA. Following the multiple benefits from the application of local content in marginal field activities, the indigenous exploration and development servicing companies have better opportunities and chances to show their technical capabilities in subsurface activities, along with field development planning. They can be easily achieved through partnership and team work with the owners of these fields.
Gove Energy has a virile, and strategic technology to eradicate oil theft in terms of trunk lines vandalism across locations.
Q. Local Content law has worked for several others, is it working for you?
Yes. Local content made it easier for me and all indigenous players to maximize the use of Nigerian human resources, materials, equipment, and services in a sustainable manner. That has helped us to showcase our professional quota across Nigeria’s petroleum and energy industry.
Q. The late Secretary General of OPEC, Mr. Barkindo, had said the industry was under siege due to campaigns against fossil fuel, geopolitics, etc. Knowing that no investor wants his money trapped, do you have a clear line of sight for your investments in the oil industry?
Yes, I do. Late Mr. Barkindo communicated the truth about the current situation; nevertheless, business is about risks. I will take calculated risk in the right direction, while foreseeing achievable opportunities, especially following the ongoing energy transition.
Q. What informed your journey into the oil industry? Was it chance?
Passion. As a teenager I really liked oil rig pictures. I always asked questions about the possibilities of laying pillars in deep waters. That led me into connecting with many oil workers. My passion soon turned into vision when I started my career as an Assistant in the office of the Director, Head Corporate Services/ HRM in the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
Q. There aren’t very many women in exploration, so what makes you feel you’ll succeed at it?
I believe in team work, operational competence, strong workforce, and with an unwavering faith in God, I will succeed.
Q. Though you’ve shattered some already, what’s that glass ceiling above you as a woman that’s still a headache?
The only glass ceiling I see before me now is “opportunity.” I understand that triumph is costly, regardless of gender. But, I need more opportunities to demonstrate my competence in oil and gas Exploration, Field Development and Production.
Q. What would you do differently if you owned a marginal field?
I will engage in strategic team work and also forget about the immediate benefits from the field. This will enable me focus more on sustainability and operational efficiency to achieve a long-term goal.
Q. What’s one fun thing about you?
I crack offhand jokes!
Local content made it easier for me and all indigenous players to maximize the use of Nigerian human resources, materials, equipment, and services in a sustainable manner.
Q. What’s your strongest attribute?
My faith.
Q. Kindly narrate one significant achievement you like to reminisce about.
Developing and sustaining Gove Energy from the year of incorporation till date has been my major achievement. I funded Gove Energy for 3 years without any project execution or external fund. Reminiscing on it gives me strength and courage despite the innumerable challenges you experience while in pursuit of fulfilling a vision.
I have leaped over several walls in my career, but raising Gove Energy will remain a life-time achievement.
Q. What’s your philosophy on leadership?
“You create it, then it creates you.” Leadership to me is lending arm to a stretched hand and speaking strength into the feeble. My career and life experiences have established my philosophy on leadership.
Q. What’s the Nigeria of your dreams?
Honestly, I wish to see a nation that would wake up tomorrow morning to acknowledge that “Nothing will happen unless she intentionally creates it.” I long for a Nigeria that will take decisions to genuinely reform and restore the system across its diverse sectors.
