-By Danlami Nasir Isah
Babs Omotowa holds a BSc in Industrial Chemistry and an MBA from the University of Ilorin. He also holds a Master’s degree specialising in Strategic Supply Chain from University of Leicester, United Kingdom and he is a Fellow of the UK Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply. He is currently studying at the Edinburgh Business School for a Doctorate in Business Administration.
He started his working career as a Chemistry and Mathematics teacher at a College in Ilorin and subsequently worked at the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Company in Lagos, before joining Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) in 1993 as a management trainee. He proceeded on assignment to Shell in the United Kingdom, Holland, and Norway, in Managerial roles in Production, Shipping and Business Improvement. He returned to Nigeria in 2006 as General Manager Supply Chain for SNEPCo and later SPDC.
In 2012, Babs Omotowa was appointed Managing Director of the Nigeria LNG and Vice President of Bonny Gas Transport, a position he held up to 2016. He was appointed into Shell’s Global Upstream Leadership as a Vice President from 2016 to 2019 and then as Special Advisor to the Upstream Director.
Babs has over 27 years of experience in the Oil and Gas Industry and was previously a Vice President in Shell Sub-Sahara Africa, a Director of Shell Petroleum Development Company, Nigeria and also a Non-Executive Director of the West Africa Gas Pipeline Company, and the Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG).
He was the Global President for the UK Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply from 2014-2015
His key achievements includes; In 2013, NLNG secured $1.6 billion to construct six modern LNG ships with Samsung and Hyundai in Korea. This was leveraged to train 600 Nigerians in ship-building and Nigerian companies exported $10million worth of goods to Korea for the ship-building, while facilitating a dry dock project by a Nigerian consortium.
Under Omotowa’s leadership, NLNG earned $40 billion in revenue. He secured N60 billion to support the Federal Government in building the Bonny-Bodo Road linking the Island with the mainland. It was under his leadership NLNG paid $2billion dividends to the nation a few weeks after the current President assumed Nigeria’s presidency in May 2015 that became the “bail-out” fund used to pay salaries of Federal, State, and Local Government workers. Omotowa’s untiring efforts were instrumental in re-establishing the Train 7 Project.
Omotowa, in 2014 led the process for the construction of modern engineering laboratories at the cost of N340 million (then $2 million) each at the University of Ibadan, University of Ilorin, University of Port Harcourt, University of Maiduguri, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He has a high reputation for Health, Safety, and Environment. Under his leadership, NLNG recorded Zero Lost Time Injury Frequency (LTIF) and over 35 Million LTI free man-hours.
Over his distinguished career at Shell across Europe and Africa, Babs was instrumental in the first onshore and offshore helicopter contract by an IOC in 50-years to a Nigeria company and secured $85m funding to enable the local company acquire brand new helicopters. He led the global transparency (web) on the status and progress on all oil spills across Shell Nigeria companies as well as Shell Upstream climate change efforts in reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25% across 40 countries.
He is currently writing a book which the International Edition will be launched in February 2021 and the Nigerian Edition shortly after. The book is on his journey from ‘Storeroom to Boardroom’ and it contains lessons learnt from childhood at a rural Nigerian village through to the Boardroom, describing personal successes, failures, challenges, opportunities, issues encountered in creating organisation and societal impact including the importance of integrity and courage to navigate key issues.
Babs is epitomised by his core values of Humility, Modesty, Diligence, Excellence, and Integrity. He is married with children and his hobbies are reading and listening to Music.