The Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) has shortlisted 606 applicants for Masters and PhD foreign scholarships for physical screening in Bauchi.
Speaking at the screening at Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, ATBU in Bauchi, Suraju Abdullahi Fari, the fund’s team lead, stated that the screening is taking place in six different states.
According to Fari, 606 individuals have been invited to screen for second and third-degree programmes.
He explained that the applicants were chosen via an online application controlled by a computerised system and vetted by the fund’s independent consultant to maintain transparency.
Fari noted that the chosen applicants must focus on oil and gas or renewable energy to address some of the country’s energy challenges.
“For transparency and fairness, we conducted the application process online, where initial selections were made by a computer system. These selections were then reviewed by our staff and vetted by independent consultants. We also invited a panel of experts from various universities and industries, including Shell and Chevron,” he said.
Also, one of the panelists, Dr. Usman Hassan, the Head of Department, Petroleum Engineering, at ATBU, said most of the proposals of the applicants interviewed were relevant to the oil and gas industry.