About the Petroleum Technology Development Journal

Overview

The Petroleum Technology Development Journal (PTDJ) is a peer-reviewed, open-access publication focused on petroleum technology, applied research, professional learning, policy development, environmental responsibility, host-community issues, and energy transition. First published as the Petroleum Training Journal on 1 June 2001, it became the Petroleum Technology Development Journal in July 2010 under the publishing responsibility of the Petroleum Technology Development Fund. PTDJ serves researchers, practitioners, policymakers, institutions, and industry stakeholders by publishing knowledge that supports petroleum-sector learning, technology development, sustainability, and national capacity building.

Our History

The Petroleum Technology Development Journal traces its origins to 1996, when Dr. Momodu Kassim-Momodu of Chevron Nigeria Limited submitted a proposal to the Forum of the Management of the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) and the Training Managers in the Petroleum Sector in Nigeria. The proposal called for an authoritative professional and academic journal dedicated to training, research, and development in the petroleum industry. The proposal remained on the agenda of the Forum’s regular February and September meetings until September 1998, when Dr. Kassim-Momodu, then Manager responsible for Training and Human Resource Planning at Chevron Nigeria Limited, hosted the meeting and committed to helping realise the journal. He subsequently made several visits from Lagos to PTI, Effurun, working with Dr. Samuel Ebika Ovuru, Principal of PTI, and Engr. Richard A. O. Edebiri, Director of Research and Consultancy, to establish the Editorial Board and the administrative structure required for the first issue. The first Editorial Board was constituted with Dr. Momodu Kassim-Momodu as Editor and Dr. Kevin Idehen as Deputy Editor. Other members were Mr. Edoreh Agba, Pastor S. O. J. Akpowowo, Mr. Zachariya A. Gundu, Mr. C. Y. Kachikwu, Mr. Chris Osarumwense, Ms. J. I. Phillips, and Mrs. Elizabeth T. Udisi. An Editorial Advisory Board was also established, chaired by Engr. Richard A. O. Edebiri, with Prof. Oye Ibidapo-Obe, Mr. S. O. Akporido, Mrs. Elsie O. Gomes, Prof. C. Ikoku, Mr. Lapai A. Isah, Mr. R. C. Nwagbara, Mr. T. I. Omoruyi, and Mr. Ndu Ughamadu as members. Mrs. Lucy O. U. Ayoola served as the journal’s full-time Administrative Secretary. The Editorial Board began sourcing publishable articles and raising funds to establish the journal on a firm footing. The first volume received direct financial support from Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, and Pipeline and Products Marketing Company Limited. Additional early support came through paid advertisements from Texaco Overseas Petroleum Company Unlimited, Chevron Nigeria Limited, Multinational Expertise Limited, and Ages Nigeria Limited. After delays caused partly by the difficulty of securing suitable articles, the first issue, Petroleum Training Journal, Volume 1 Number 1, was published on 1 June 2001. It was formally launched on 26 September 2002, with Miss Ama I. Pepple, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, representing Dr. Rilwanu Lukman, the Presidential Adviser on Petroleum and Energy. From June 2001 to July 2010, the journal was published by the Forum, with Chevron Nigeria Limited providing office accommodation and full-time staff support in Lagos. The Petroleum Technology Development Fund later undertook to support the journal by absorbing printing costs after the Forum resolved to operate it as a not-for-profit publication, distributed free to Nigerian public universities, polytechnics, monotechnic, selected overseas libraries, and universities. In 2005, the National Universities Commission ranked the journal first in Nigeria’s technology and engineering category. In July 2010, a memorandum of understanding enabled the Petroleum Technology Development Fund to assume publishing responsibility and rename the publication as the Petroleum Technology Development Journal (PTDJ). The new title broadened the journal’s identity from a training and manpower development publication to a wider platform for petroleum technology, applied research, innovation, policy analysis, environmental responsibility, host-community development, and energy transition. The public presentation of the first issue of PTDJ by Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke, Nigerian Minister of Petroleum was on 19 July 2011 at the International Conference Centre, Abuja.

Editorial Focus

PTDJ publishes work across the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors of the petroleum and energy value chain. Its coverage includes geosciences, reservoir studies, petroleum engineering, drilling and production technology, process engineering, refining, gas utilisation, health, safety and environment, host-community relations, corporate social responsibility, regulation, energy economics, and national oil and gas policy. The journal also reflects emerging sector priorities, including environmental remediation, sustainability, local content, investment governance, renewable energy integration, and the energy transition. This breadth enables PTDJ to support scholarly research, professional debate, and evidence-based policy discussion.

Key Milestones

Why PTDJ Matters

PTDJ’s significance lies in its continuity, adaptability, and contribution to national knowledge development. From its origins as a training and manpower development publication, the journal has become a platform for research, policy engagement, environmental responsibility, technology development, and sector-wide learning. The journal is indexed in International Scientific Indexing (ISI). The URL for the journal on the ISI server is https://isindexing.com/isi/journaldetails.php?id=16635 

Our Continuing Mission

Today, the Petroleum Technology Development Journal continues to preserve petroleumsector knowledge while promoting research, innovation, sustainability, and energy-transition dialogue. Its evolution from the Petroleum Training Journal to a PTDF-led publication reflects the enduring value of partnership, institutional continuity, and locally anchored scholarship in support of Nigeria’s petroleum industry.