In a major overhaul, President Bola Tinubu has removed Mele Kyari as the Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, effective April 2, 2025. The decision was announced in a statement by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.¹
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Kyari’s replacement, Bashir Bayo Ojulari, takes the reins as the new Group CEO, while Ahmadu Musa Kida has been appointed as the Non-Executive Chairman of the newly constituted 11-member board. Adedapo Segun has been confirmed as the company’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO).
The restructuring aims to enhance operational efficiency, restore investor confidence, and make NNPC more commercially viable. The new board has been tasked with reviewing NNPC-operated and Joint Venture Assets to ensure alignment with value maximization objectives.
New Board Members
The newly appointed non-executive directors represent each geopolitical zone:
- North-West: Bello Rabiu
- North-East: Yusuf Usman
- North-Central: Babs Omotowa, former Managing Director of the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG)
- South-South: Austin Avuru
- South-West: David Ige
- South-East: Henry Obih
Lydia Shehu Jafiya, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, and Aminu Said Ahmed of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources will represent their respective ministries on the new board.
Tinubu’s Vision for NNPC
President Tinubu has prioritized investment-driven reforms in the oil sector, attracting $17 billion in new investments since 2023. The administration aims to increase this to $30 billion by 2027 and $60 billion by 2030.
The government also targets raising crude oil production to two million barrels daily by 2027 and three million by 2030, alongside a gas production goal of 8 billion cubic feet daily by 2027 and 10 billion cubic feet by 2030.
New Leadership’s Expertise
Ahmadu Musa Kida, the new NNPC Chairman, brings over three decades of experience in the oil and gas sector. Bayo Ojulari, the new Group CEO, has expertise in petroleum process engineering, strategic planning, and field development, having worked across Europe and the Middle East.