2023: Engineer Francis Obateru Among Three Finalists For RISE Environmental Stewardship Award in Canada

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Engineer Idowu Francis Obateru has won the nomination for the 2023 RISE Environmental Stewardship Award in Canada.

Engineer Obateru, who holds the distinguished role of Staff Engineer – Energy, Environment and Emissions, emerged as one of the three quintessential professionals nominated by their peers who filled out a nomination form and shared their thoughts on what makes this individual unique and deserving of a RISE Award.”

The two other finalists for this year’s award are Nicole Jackson and Matthew O’Regan.

Obateru has continually excelled in his profession and has been in this position for two years.

Indeed, the RISE Awards recognizes individuals who show excellence. These are individuals within “Pembina who inspire us as they excel in their roles, exemplify our values, and strengthen our culture.”

The Environmental Stewardship Award also recognizes an individual who has stewarded environmental awareness and promoted sustainability.

According to the promoters, “Their work directly impacted our 30 by 30 target and contributed to operational opportunities that ensure energy is developed and delivered responsibly.

“The RISE Selection and Evaluation Committee reviewed each of these nominations and narrowed it down to the top three finalists in each area.”

For Obateru, he said the value that resonates most with him is entrepreneurial and his work showcases that.

His nominator explained that he “is truly focused on continuous improvement and finding new opportunities to reduce our impact in the environment; reducing greenhouse gas emissions at the Redwater site, both through testing different approaches and introducing new technologies. Francis is fueling change at Pembina. Recently, Francis successfully changed processes at Redwater to reduce an estimated 7,200 tonnes of caron dioxide equivalent.

“Francis’s role is often called an “E3”, and his nominator joked that E3 really means extremely excellent engineer, which is a title Francis lives up to.”

An obviously elated Engineer Francis Obateru said to him, the Value of being entrepreneurial “encourages me to think outside the box and be attentive to tasks that add more value to the Company. I am also keen on ensuring that the capabilities of the Pembina team (our in-house human assets) are utilized to their full potential, getting tasks completed on time and within budget.”

Carrying out this work with a smile on his face and a positive attitude, he has developed strong relationships throughout the organization and is said to inspire collaboration.

Also Nicole Jackson, based in Grande Prairie, has been a part of the Pembina team for 1.5 years. She’s made a big impact in a short time, proving herself to be a trustworthy partner who leads by example and her honesty and forthright nature allows others to feel comfortable.

As Senior Advisor, Environment, Nicole is focused on environmental stewardship every day, but she went above and beyond her daily role as part of the emergency response and follow-up to the Northern Pipeline System Incident, where a release of natural gas occurred in January 2023.

She supported this response in the field for several months working as both a liaison with the regulators and as a coordinator for the environmental response and site remediation.

Her nominator explained that Nicole was “a key member of the response team, collaborating not just with the team and contractors on site, but leveraging knowledge from other parts of the organization to ensure the site remediation was done to a high level of quality.”

Nicole also shared her view: “The Incident Command Post team in Valleyview was a great team of individuals from all divisions collaborating for our company. Many people dedicated themselves to the project during this time and we successfully remediated the site this summer.”

The third finalist, Matthew O’Regan, has been a part of the Pembina team for almost a decade and currently holds the role of Business Development Lead, New Ventures. He joined the New Ventures group as it was formed in early 2020.

His nominator shared that Matt is committed to environmental protection and enjoyment of Canada’s great natural landscapes in both his personal and professional life.

He has an important leadership role in Pembina’s efforts to support the energy transition and played a part in negotiating two renewable power purchase agreements, a first of their kind for Pembina

When asked about which value resonates with him most, Matt said, “Pembina’s value of ‘collaborative’ resonates most strongly with me as the successful projects I have been fortunate enough to be a part of at the company have always required commitment to work together with various teams and business units. Success requires motivation and contributions from many and when you achieve the team’s goal it’s a gratifying feeling.”