Lagos – October 16, 2026 -- Nigerian Content in the oil and gas sector reached 56% at the end of 2023, up from less than 5% in 2010, according to the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).
The board also reports that implementation of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act has created more than 50,000 direct jobs. It has also kept over $8 billion in annual oil and gas expenditure within the Nigerian economy. The 2010 Local Content Act set the framework for greater participation by Nigerian companies and professionals.
NCDMB targets 70% Nigerian Content by 2027
The NCDMB's 10-Year Strategic Roadmap sets an ambition of 70% Nigerian Content by 2027. Dorman Long Engineering is presented as an example of how indigenous engineering, fabrication and talent development can support that target.
Other resource-producing countries have pursued similar models. Brazil used local-content requirements to lift domestic procurement and develop local supplier chains. Malaysia's PETRONAS ran vendor-development programmes to help local suppliers compete beyond the domestic market. Ghana's framework emphasises technology and skills transfer to indigenous companies.
Dorman Long moved from infrastructure into offshore oil and gas work in 1994
Founded in 1949, Dorman Long has worked on railway projects, warehouses for UAC and PZ, and the first Niger Bridge. It entered oil and gas in the 1990s after an introduction by the then Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation. In 1994 it began working with Shell on pressure vessels, manifolds and separation packages.
Its later work includes components and structures for the Agbami and Akpo FPSOs, along with engineering, procurement and asset-management services.
Training programmes reached 78 trainees in 2017 and 40 community participants by 2022
In 2017, Dorman Long trained 78 Nigerians through a 12-week programme sponsored by Hyundai Heavy Industries. The group was split evenly: 39 in Non-Destructive Testing and 39 as Project Management Professionals.
Between August 2021 and August 2022, the company worked with Shell Petroleum Development Company to train 40 young people from the Assa North and Ohaji South communities in Imo State. Eight received professional training. The other 32 took vocational courses including welding and fitting, scaffolding and rigging, electrical installation, civil engineering and quantity surveying.
In 2025, Dorman Long signed an MoU with the Nigerian Society of Engineers covering training, consultancy and human-capital development. It includes structured training for student members and a one-year stipend-backed programme for graduate members.
Nigeria's population exceeds 230 million, and young entrants to the labour market often face a gap between academic qualifications and industry-ready skills.