Ibe Kachikwu, minister of state for petroleum resources, has approved the appointment of Sunny Esayegbemu Iyukeas the principal/chief executive officer of the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI), Effurun, Delta State.
According to a statement from the ministry of petroleum resources signed by Idang Alibi, director of press and public relations, made available to BusinessDay on Thursday in Abuja, the minister approved the appointment in line with the Petroleum Institute Act of 1972.
PTI is an institution established to provide instruction, training and research in petroleum technology and produce technicians and other skilled personnel for the petroleum industry.
Iyuke is a professor of chemical and metallurgical engineering at the University of Witwatersrand (Wits), Johannesburg, South Africa. He obtained B.Sc (Chemistry) degree from the then Bendel State University (now Ambrose Alli University), Ekpoma and M.Sc (Chemical Engineering) degree from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in 1987 and 1994 respectively. He bagged his PhD in Chemical and Process Engineering from the National University of Malaysia in 1999.
An Intellectual of great repute, Iyuke has over 260 articles published in Journals worldwide and has numerous patents in nanotechnology locally and internationally including the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
He was the Chair of Biochemical Engineering at the University of Witwatersrand from 2007 – 2013. He is a Visiting Professor at the Institute of Petroleum Studies (IPS), University of Port-Harcourt; he has also collaborated in research and teaching at the Fuel Cell Institute of the National University of Malaysia; the University of Alaska, Fairbanks and the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, USA. Iyuke is a registered professional Engineer with the Engineering Council of South Africa; a Fellow of the South African Academy of Engineers and a Chartered Engineer with the Engineering Council, United Kingdom.
The new chief executive of PTI was born in Irhodo Jesse in Sapele, Ethiope-West Local Government Area of Delta State. He is aged 52 years and is married with children.
