From the North Sea to Africa, North America, and back again: Emeka’s Story

In his own words, Emeka is a “proud science geek”. He first joined bp on the graduate Challenge Programme in Aberdeen 22 years ago, working offshore in the North Sea. Since then, his career at bp has been wide-ranging. He has had a variety of roles in offshore production, petroleum engineering, functional performance, and subsurface and reservoir development, and has travelled with his family across the globe – from Scotland to Alaska, England, Egypt, and Texas. 

Today, Emeka is senior vice president responsible for the North Sea, returning to the same place his career started. “Coming back is like a bit of a homecoming,” he says. 

Shifting focus in the North Sea

The North Sea has long been an important part of bp’s portfolio. So, Emeka feels a particular sense of responsibility in returning to the region. In his role as senior vice president, Emeka wants to stay true to the region’s history and is also committed to making sure that the North Sea thrives in line with bp’s energy transition. 

“Given the changes we’re trying to make as a company, the North Sea has to be one of the first places that exemplifies change in a powerful way,” he explains. 

Traditionally, oil and gas facilities produce a number of emissions. Emeka’s team is working hard to change this. “How can we adapt the way that our oil and gas facilities are designed and operated, coupling low emissions with the cash flows we expect as a company?” he asks. “It’s an important problem that we must solve.” 

Emeka’s team recently collaborated with Microsoft to use data from the ‘digital twin’ of one of bp’s new platforms at Clair Ridge. The project will give bp unique insight into the efficiency of the platform’s systems, helping to drive reductions of methane emissions by optimizing production. 

“The team is really grasping the challenge to make sure that we get better measurements in place. The hope is that these kinds of learnings from the North Sea can then be applied across bp’s operations globally.” 

Solving big problems

Looking back at his career, Emeka is proudest of what his teams have worked to accomplish. One example from his time in the Gulf of Mexico: “Working across multiple teams, we found options to fill the various hubs in the region, including getting the Na Kika platform back to production levels not seen since the early days of the asset’s life.”

But even more than his work, what Emeka values the most about bp are the people. He explains: