President Bola Tinubu has made sweeping changes to the leadership of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), dismissing Mele Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), and Chairman Pius Akinyelure, along with the entire 11-member board. The shake-up, announced on April 2, 2025, is seen as part of Tinubu’s efforts to restructure and reinvigorate the nation’s oil and gas sector. The decision reflects a move to bolster the operational efficiency and competitiveness of NNPCL, Nigeria’s state-owned oil giant.
In a bid to lead the company through this new chapter, President Tinubu appointed Engineer Bashir Bayo Ojulari as the new GCEO. Ojulari, a seasoned oil and gas professional with vast experience at Shell, is expected to bring fresh perspectives and expertise to the company. Alongside Ojulari, the board now includes highly regarded professionals from various sectors, including former NLNG Managing Director Babs Omotowa and Shell’s Ahmadu Musa Kida as non-executive chairman.
The new leadership team is tasked with several key objectives, including boosting Nigeria’s oil production, restoring investor confidence, and advancing the country’s gas commercialization agenda. They are also directed to review NNPCL’s strategic portfolio and ensure that assets are managed for maximum value. These goals align with Tinubu’s broader vision of revitalizing Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, aiming to increase oil production to 2 million barrels per day by 2027 and 3 million barrels per day by 2030.
The restructuring comes as part of Tinubu’s broader economic agenda to address long-standing challenges in the oil sector, including inefficiency, lack of transparency, and underinvestment. Tinubu has emphasized the importance of diversifying the nation’s energy output, particularly focusing on increasing natural gas production, which is seen as crucial for Nigeria’s future energy security and economic growth.
Critics have long pointed to the need for reform in NNPCL to make the organization more responsive to both local and global energy market shifts. The new leadership’s ability to drive these changes will be pivotal in determining the success of Tinubu’s oil sector reforms, which will have lasting implications for Nigeria’s economic future and its position in the global energy landscape.
