The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Limited’s board has been disbanded and Mele Kyari sacked as group CEO by President Bola Tinubu.
Early on Wednesday, Bayo Onanuga, the president’s special adviser on information and strategy, signed a statement announcing the decision, which will take effect on April 2, 2025. an
Tinubu highlighted the necessity for “enhanced operational efficiency, restored investor confidence, and a more commercially viable NNPC” in order to defend the action.
The president started the extensive reorganisation by exercising his authority under Section 59(2) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
As part of the reorganisation, Mele Kyari has been replaced as Group CEO by Bayo Ojulari.
Furthermore, Pius Akinyelure has been replaced as the non-executive chairman of NNPC by Ahmadu Musa Kida.
Additionally, Adedapo Segun has been officially announced as the new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the organisation.
The president also appointed six non-executive directors, each of whom represented a geographic zone in Nigeria, in compliance with the PIA.
These include:
- Bello Rabiu for the North-West
- Yusuf Usman for the North-East
- Babs Omotowa, former MD of Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG), for the North-Central
- Austin Avuru for the South-South
- David Ige for the South-West
- Henry Obih for the South-East
Lydia Shehu Jafiya, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, and Aminu Said Ahmed from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources will also represent their respective ministries on the new board.
Additionally, the statement made clear that the goal of the reorganisation is to realign NNPC Limited with international best practices in order to improve production and efficiency. According to the statement, “We are taking bold steps to transform the company into a more transparent and commercially-driven entity.”
Implementing a strategic action plan, which involves evaluating NNPC-operated and joint venture assets to match them with value maximisation objectives, is one of the new board’s responsibilities.
With a target of $30 billion by 2027 and $60 billion by 2030, President Tinubu’s government has brought in $17 billion in new investments in the oil industry since 2023. Additionally, by 2027 and 2030, the government hopes to boost crude oil output to 2 million barrels per day and 3 million barrels per day, respectively. Furthermore, the goal is to produce 8 billion cubic feet of gas per day by 2027 and 10 billion cubic feet by 2030.
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Through plans to increase crude oil refining production to 200,000 barrels per day by 2027 and 500,000 barrels per day by 2030, the president also anticipates that the new leadership would increase NNPC’s refining capacity. This supports the administration’s goal of boosting local refining capabilities in order to lessen dependency on gasoline imports and improve Nigeria’s energy security.
The New NNPC Leadership
The new chairman of the NNPC, Ahmadu Musa Kida, has worked in the oil and gas sector for more than 30 years.
After earning a degree in civil engineering from Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria, he went on to the Institut Français du Pétrole (IFP) in Paris to obtain a postgraduate diploma in petroleum engineering.
Kida has held positions with Total Exploration and Production and Elf Petroleum Nigeria.
In 2015, he was appointed deputy managing director of Deep Water Services. His most recent position was at Pan Ocean-Newcross Group as an independent non-executive director.
The new Group CEO, Bayo Ojulari, is a native of Kwara State and graduated from Ahmadu Bello University with a degree in mechanical engineering.
Ojulari joined Shell Petroleum Development Company in 1991 after starting his career at Elf Aquitaine.
He has worked in Europe and the Middle East and has experience in field development, strategic planning, and petroleum process engineering.
He joined Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO) in 2015 as Managing Director. Ojulari was most recently the chief operational officer and executive vice president of Renaissance Africa Energy Company.
President Tinubu commended the former board members for their hard work, particularly for helping to restore the refineries in Port Harcourt and Warri, which were able to start producing petroleum products again after extended shutdowns.
The president wished them well as they pursued their goals.
