The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has announced GeoPredict AI as the winner of the maiden Technology Innovation Challenge (TIC) 2026, awarding the technology startup a ₦25 million prize at the final competition and award ceremony held on Wednesday, August 12, 2026, at the Nigerian Content Towers (NCT), Yenagoa. The award was for its innovative solution with strong potential to address critical challenges in the oil and gas industry and advance the Board’s commitment to indigenous technology development and increased Nigerian Content.
The TIC 2026, promoted by the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Centre (EIC) Limited, is a strategic intervention by the NCDMB to bridge the gap between research and commercialisation, providing a platform for Nigerian innovators to develop and showcase technology-driven solutions to challenges across the oil and gas value chain, including drilling, pipeline maintenance, produced water management and subsea operations. Through mentorship, coaching and a physical bootcamp, participants refined their ideas, strengthened their pitching skills and advanced their solutions towards industry deployment.
In his keynote address, the Executive Secretary, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe (FNSE), represented by the Director, Corporate Services, Dr. Abdulmalik Halilu, said the TIC is far more than a ceremony or a competition, that it is the Board’s “strategic platform to move innovation from the confines of the laboratory directly to industrial application in the Nigerian oil and gas industry and also linkage sectors.”
According to him, the initiative is also designed to ensure that Nigerian Content evolves beyond service delivery into high-end and sustainable technological ownership, where technologies required to power the nation’s oil and gas industry are increasingly designed, developed and deployed by Nigerians.
The NCDMB boss called on operators and other industry stakeholders, including Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN), Independent Petroleum Producers Group (IPPG) and Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS), to provide opportunities for field trials, technology validation and early adoption, stressing that their participation would constitute a significant contribution to national development and be critical to the successful commercialisation of the innovations.
“We need research that is born from the specific, tangible problems in drilling, pipeline maintenance, produced water management, subsea operations, and other critical areas of the industry,” he stated, adding, “It is time to shift our collective focus from academic application to practical application, solving the genuine problems that the industry is currently facing.” Continuing, he charged, “Let your laboratories become the testing grounds for the next great Nigerian solution.”
Ogbe further reaffirmed the Board’s commitment to supporting the innovators beyond the competition, noting that access to capital is critical to technology commercialisation. He highlighted NCDMB’s strategic funding models, human capacity development and business incubation initiatives as key support mechanisms for taking validated innovations from the pilot stage to market deployment.
Earlier in his welcome address, the Director, Planning, Research and Statistics (PRS), NCDMB, Mr. Silas Omamehin Ajimijaye, said achieving the Board’s Nigerian Content aspirations requires deliberate conversion of research into industry-ready solutions.
“This initiative will introduce new levels of indigenous technological solutions for the Nigerian oil and gas sector,” he noted, explaining that “for Nigerian Content to grow to 70 per cent by 2027, we must deliberately convert our research output into commercial products and services for the industry. The challenge is a structured intervention by the Board to move research from concept on paper to technology on the field.”
Mr. Silas on behalf of the Executive Secretary urged operators, service companies, academia and other stakeholders to support the adoption and scaling of the innovations, stressing that the impact of TIC would ultimately be measured by their deployment in the industry.
The industry stakeholders at the event also emphasised the importance of creating an enabling ecosystem for indigenous technology adoption.
The Petroleum Training Institute (PTI), Warri, through its Director of Innovation, Research and Development, Dr. Tina Olubokola Isichei, commended NCDMB for the initiative, expressing optimism that programmes such as TIC could help strengthen Nigeria’s position on the global innovation landscape.
She pointed out that “Nigeria’s 105th position out of 139 economies in the 2025 Global Innovation Index shows that we need deliberate efforts to move research and innovation beyond ideas and into industry-ready solutions.” According to her, “Through platforms like this, NCDMB is providing a critical pathway for developing, validating and commercialising indigenous technologies.”
On behalf of the Management of PTI, Dr. Isichei assured the innovators of the institution’s readiness to support them through the testing, validation and other technical processes required to prepare their solutions for industry deployment. She noted that PTI’s facilities are available to innovators, providing them with access to relevant infrastructure and a practical environment to test, refine and validate their technologies for real-world application.
Also, representing the leadership of the OPTS, Engr. Oluyoye Adebowale described the initiative as a demonstration of Nigeria’s capacity to develop local solutions to industry challenges, noting that innovation, creative problem-solving and technological advancement remain critical to the competitiveness of the oil and gas sector.
He encouraged stronger collaboration between established industry players and emerging innovators to develop technologies capable of improving operational efficiency, enhancing energy security, reducing environmental impact and creating sustainable economic value.
Similarly, the Chairman of PETAN, Engr. Wole Ogunsanya, represented by Dr. John Faluyi, commended NCDMB’s intervention, stressing that Nigeria possesses significant research capacity, engineering talent and innovative ideas, but requires stronger structures to translate these into safe, reliable, certified and commercially viable technologies.
He called for sustained collaboration among innovators, operators, regulators, research institutions and investors to support testing, certification, pilot deployment, local manufacturing, job creation and the eventual export of Nigerian technologies.
Industry stakeholders present at the ceremony commended NCDMB for the initiative, describing TIC as a timely platform for advancing indigenous technology and commercialisation. They stressed that stronger collaboration among government, industry, academia and innovators would deepen local capacity and reduce reliance on imported solutions.
Furthermore, the participants appreciated NCDMB for providing a platform to refine their innovations, understand industry needs and build commercialisation skills. They said the mentorship, bootcamp and industry engagement strengthened their technical and business capabilities, while creating a pathway to validate and deploy homegrown solutions across the oil and gas value chain.
At the maiden NCDMB Technology Innovation Challenge 2026, where GeoPredict AI emerged winner, its AI-driven solution for reservoir characterisation and drilling decisions, was adjudged outstanding. FrassPlus placed second with ₦15 million for hydrocarbon bioremediation, while MAR Thermal SIM came third with ₦10 million for offshore corrosion assessment. Other finalists included BMV-6 Medical Ventilator, MaxFox AeroShield and Metallocene Organic Rechargeable Battery, reinforcing NCDMB’s commitment to indigenous technology, research commercialisation and homegrown solutions for the energy sector.
According to the chairperson of the Judging Panel, Dr. Ibilola Amao, principal consultant, Lonadek Global Services, the selection of the winners was based on key criteria, including strategic alignment with Nigerian Content objectives, commercialisation readiness, potential industry impact, scalability of the solutions, and their capacity to showcase Nigeria’s technological and innovative capabilities within the oil and gas sector.
The initiative also supports NCDMB’s broader objective of transitioning the industry from a compliance-driven “Nigeria First” approach to a performance-driven “Nigeria Preferred” mindset, where indigenous technologies are selected because of their quality, efficiency, reliability and ability to deliver value.
The ceremony was attended by representatives of key institutions and industry bodies, including the National Board for Technology Incubation (NBTI), PTI, NNPC Research, Technology and Innovation Centre (RTI-NNPCL), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), OPTS, PETAN, NCDMB Centres of Excellence, academia, research institutions, industry operators, judges, mentors and innovators.
As TIC 2026 concludes, NCDMB has reaffirmed that the award ceremony marks the beginning, rather than the end, of the innovators’ journey, with focus now shifting to technology validation, industry linkages, commercialisation and deployment of promising homegrown solutions across the oil and gas value chain.
