President Bola Tinubu has appointed Engineer Bashir Bayo Ojulari as the new Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), replacing Mele Kyari.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga announced the appointment while confirming the dissolution of the NNPCL board. Chief Pius Akinyelure, who served as board chairman, has been replaced by Ahmadu Musa Kida.
“All other board members appointed alongside Akinyelure and Kyari in November 2023 have also been removed,” Onanuga stated.
According to the statement, the restructured 11-man board will have Engineer Bashir Bayo Ojulari as the GCEO and Ahmadu Musa Kida as the non-executive chairman.
Adedapo Segun, who was appointed as chief financial officer last November to replace Umaru Isa Ajiya, will now serve on the new board.
The six geopolitical zones are represented on the board by non-executive directors: Bello Rabiu (North West), Yusuf Usman (North East), and Babs Omotowa, a former managing director of the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG), representing North Central.
The South-South will be represented by Austin Avuru, while David Ige and Henry Obih will serve as non-executive directors for the South West and South East, respectively.
Additionally, Mrs. Lydia Shehu Jafiya, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, will represent the ministry on the board, while Aminu Said Ahmed has been appointed as the representative of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
President Tinubu stated that the appointments, effective April 2, are aimed at enhancing operational efficiency, restoring investor confidence, boosting local content, and driving economic growth. He emphasized that the board must focus on gas commercialization and diversification.
“In exercising the powers conferred under Section 59, subsection 2 of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, the President has undertaken this restructuring to ensure the NNPC remains a global energy leader,” Onanuga said.
The President further charged the new board to conduct a strategic portfolio review of NNPC-operated and joint venture assets to align them with value maximization objectives.
“Since 2023, the Tinubu administration has pursued critical reforms in the oil sector to attract investments. In 2024, the NNPC secured $17 billion in new investments, with a target of increasing this to $30 billion by 2027 and $60 billion by 2030,” Onanuga revealed.
“The administration aims to raise oil production to two million barrels per day by 2027 and three million by 2030. Similarly, gas production is expected to increase to 8 billion cubic feet per day by 2027 and 10 billion cubic feet per day by 2030.”
Furthermore, Tinubu directed the new board to increase NNPC’s share of crude oil refining output to 200,000 barrels per day by 2027 and 500,000 barrels per day by 2030.
