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Tag: NNPC

  • Audit NNPC 2022, 2023; Gridlock; 18m

    Audit NNPC 2022, 2023; Gridlock; 18m

    Mismanagement is a word deliberately misapplied by nefarious Nigerians to cover up deliberate fiscal failures and the premeditated financial operational calculated chaos aka systemic corruption when a Nigerian politician or appointee of a government, state or LGA in a Ministry, Department or Agency, MDA, or preferable Ministry, Agency or Department, MAD, knowingly corruptly decimates our resources. Such acts cumulatively amount to losses in the trillions of naira depriving the citizenry including our 18million out of school children and their families through a deliberate mismanagement strategy.

    The funds are corruptly removed from servicing our suffering poor, making them poorer. The theft or mismanagement particularly reduces the quality and quantity of facilities available to the needy. Such funds could have built a conducive learning environment for all including Nigeria’s 18million out-of-school youth denied quality education-a Nigerian birth right required for personal empowerment and Nigeria’s survival.

    Why do powerful Nigerians callously steal so much from poor Nigerians as to cause pain, depression, deprivation, disease and death? Why do most Nigerians in authority get so greedy, depriving the needy?

    The effects of mismanaging the MDA/MADs electricity bill and pension fund payments monthly As-And-When-Due, AAWD, are two burning examples of the suffering caused when leaders from governors etc. fail to pay legitimate  service charges AAWD, monthly, but prefer to ‘mismanage’ or corruptly ‘disappear’ the funds for self-serving corruption-driven projects with zero outcomes; or steal the money outright only to blame innocent pythons, other snakes, rats and cockroaches for eating the money meant for hospitals and schools for the 18m out of school youth and others.

    EFCC has accused an ex-governor that he so loved his own children, to the detriment of the youth, and that he took government money to pay his own children’s school fees, in dollars, for years in advance. Did he include his infants in primary school zero, or some unborn babies? The governor ignored his self-imposed responsibility for educating millions of Nigerian children with that money. If confirmed, what mismanagement/corruption!! Calculate the loss and suffering among Nigerian children made ignorant by absence of that money. Did someone die? Perhaps, because money does save the uncertain lives of mothers and their unborn babies today, instead of being stolen to guarantee the educational future of only the governor’s offspring.

    Read Also: NNPC: The rough road ahead for Ojulari

    Most leaders across MDA/MADs have similarly self-enriched and failed Nigeria. Too few managed without stealing.   Nigeria’s vast resources would have carried Nigeria higher up the ladder of development measured by the UNs MDGs and SDGs, the Transparency International Index, Corruption Perception Index etc. Foreigners since forever, release petty funds to fill the huge financial hole dug by pathologically fraudulent MAD ‘leaders’.   

    Of course, the developed world powers ensure Africa remains hungry ‘consumptive’ and ‘developing’, servile and dependent on the West. However, unasked, most African political elite under-develop their countries, and Nigeria leads by massively mismanaged Nigerian MDAs. Foreigners hardly mentioned Africa. That shows even Giant of Africa Nigeria’s ‘receivership status’ no matter how flamboyant Nigerian social functions are. We do know that foreign powers, white and yellow, snigger at us as we collect loans to steal to save in their banks. However, it is unlikely that the foreigners will take out a governor who refuses to steal or be corrupt and instead develops his state with every kobo of state income from IGR and FAAC allocations. So, what is our Nigerian leadership’s motivation to constantly steal from our children? 

    The ‘Great Lagos Traffic Jam’ of Wednesday April 2 precipitated by the ill-timed closure of one bridge is typical MDA mismanagement/corruption with misplaced power of governance. It demonstrates numerous costly, multi-billion naira loss lessons. Firstly, we see ‘Cause and Consequence of actions’. Here we clearly see cause i.e. closure, and consequence i.e. citywide 10-hour gridlock costing billions from shop closures, vendors losses from millions of office workers and trapped transporters. Secondly, we see a ‘Ministry of Road Arrogant Power’-, not a ‘Ministry of Road Service’.  Thirdly, we see no ‘Time and Motion’ studies, essential to anticipate impact and prevent ‘Action -Reaction’ traffic catastrophes.

    Disgracefully, such traffic catastrophic failures are commonplace. We have experienced it, without apology or sympathy or ministerial or press outrage, on the ‘Lagos Ibadan non-expressway’ for 15 years, ameliorated only in the last few months. Lagos, welcome to our ‘Traffic Suffering Club’ which was punished by the contractors and ignored for 15 years by the Ministry of Works when it took 6-12 hours to traverse.

    The Auditor General’s 2021 Audit revelations of NNPC Plc reveal the DISGUSTING BUT EXPECTED ‘MEGA-MISMANAGEMENT’ AKA CORRUPTION ‘DISCOVERED’ IN THE NNPC Plc. AUDIT DEPRIVING OUR 18M OUT OF SCHOOL YOUTH OF THEIR FUTURE . How dare MDA/MADs AUDIT be so illegally late? We will only see the end of multi-billion diversions when we have immediate audits and criminal charges. All federal and state funds earned should go to rescuing citizens and strengthening our murdered currency value. The federal government should order immediate simultaneous 2022 and 2023 audits and introduce an in year Quarterly Auditor-General Report to prevent MEGA FRAUD AND MISMANAGEMENT. We need such audits to force our MDA leaders to STOP STEALING THE FUTURE.

    AN 18M WEAK YOUTH ARMY, BRAIN STARVED, WILL MUTATE INTO A DESTRUCTIVE STRONG ADULT ARMY OF DESTRUCTION AND FUTURE EVIL. ANTI-CORRUPTION AUDITS ARE CHEAPER THAN FIGHTING AFTER MISMANAGEMENT CORRUPTION HAS TAKEN PLACE.        

  • Kida’s  NNPC appointment will boost sports reforms, says Dikko

    Kida’s  NNPC appointment will boost sports reforms, says Dikko

    National Sports Commission (NSC)  Chairman Mallam Shehu Dikko  believes the appointment of Engr. Musa Kida as Board’s Chairman of NNPCL, is a major boost towards  the on-going reforms in the  sports sector.

    Mallam Dikko  said as much when he played host  to Eng. Kida yesterday where they  deliberated on mutually beneficial issues towards  the advancement of sports.

    While congratulating Engr. Kida, who is also the President of Nigeria Basketball Federation, on his appointment, Dikko seized the opportunity to highlight how his current position can rub off positively on the sports economy. The NSC Chairman applauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu once more fitting a round peg into a round hole.

    Dikko said: “The President has always shown this knack for identifying the right people for every specific assignment. I have known Engr. Kida long enough to know that he will excel in this assignment. It once more highlights the quality of leadership we require in the Sports Federations. People with clear second address. Definitely this appointment is one that will help us in the ongoing reforms in the sector. We are talking more of the economic side of sports and Engr. Kida with his achievements in the corporate world and indeed sports, no doubt fits into this vision.”

    In Dikko’s opinion, Kida’s appointment adds to the growing list of sports administrators who are deemed worthy of higher responsibilities in the society either in the private or public sectors.

    Read Also: Dare: Under Dikko, Olopade Nigeria’s sports development in safe hands

    “Honestly, this shows the quality of people that are administering sports in this country. People that are deemed worthy of holding key positions even outside sports. Consider the likes of Hon. Silas Agara, former Deputy Governor of Nasarawa and currently the DG National Directorate of Employment. He is the President of the Karate Federation of Nigeria and is doing so well.”

    He added: “Simon Nkom, DG Nigeria Mining Cadestre Office is the President of Nigeria Hockey Federation. His giant strides in Hockey are also well documented. The former Country Director of PwC Uyi Akpata has made tremendous strides in his stint as Nigeria Cricket Federation President. He has taken Nigerian cricket to the  level where we can now compete favourably against the East Africans.

    “Similarly we can see the impact of somebody like Bisi Adebutu in advancing cycling, and most importantly we can see what the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of Economy Mr. Wale Edu is doing in Boxing and Marial Arts sports. Indeed it’s quite exciting to see the Minister of Finance/CME and the Chairman of NNPCL Board being core sports personalities,” he said.

    Dikko noted  that Kida’s appointment will encourage more private sector involvement in the sports ecosystem.

    “This appointment will put sports on the front burner. We all can see what he is doing with Nigerian basketball. This will surely rub off on our sports. The private sector will reckon with sports more now, a development that will help this sports economy vision and we cannot thank President Tinubu enough for this appointment,” he added.

  • NNPC Foundation flags off distribution of 25,000 STEM books 

    NNPC Foundation flags off distribution of 25,000 STEM books 

    The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) Foundation has flagged -off the distribution of 25,000 Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) books to 25 schools in 24 States and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    The Foundation’s Managing Director, Mrs. Emmanuella Arukwe, kicked-off the distribution at the School For The Gifted, Gwagwalada, Abuja.

    She said: “And today, we are starting the flag off on the distribution in actual 25 schools, 24 states, and the federal capital territory”

    She said the School For the Gifted was tipped as a beneficiary being a centre for children who have distinguished themselves.

    ” And it’s one of the schools that we have chosen. Well, it’s about this initiative, because we know that this is a very special school, and we have this book, and these are gifted children who have done so well.”

    The distribution was the second phase of the initiative from which the foundation handed over 1,000 STEM books to the school.

    She recalled that in the first phase of the initiative last year, the foundation shared 15,000 STEM books to 15 schools in 15 states.

    40,000 books will be distributed in the phase one and two of the initiative.

    Arukwe said: “As part of our educational initiatives, we are pleased to introduce the STEM  Books and Shelves Distribution Project, designed to enhance the study of  Science, Technology, Engineering, and Matheratics (STEM) in secondary  schools across Nigeria. This is the second phase of the initiative, which we  commenced in 2024, with 15 schools from the six geopolitical zones of the  country and the FCT. 

    Read Also: NNPC: The rough road ahead for Ojulari

    “A total of 40,000 STEM textbooks, from both the first and now second  phases of this initiative are to be distributed to public secondary schools in  the 36 States and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, with the identified  schools receiving 1,000 copies each of the textbooks and a designated  library bookshelf for storage and accessibility.”

    She further noted that the NNPC Foundation is a social arm of NNPC Limited, and it was incorporated in 2023 to carry out social initiatives for NNPC Limited.

    She added that the foundation undertakes the initiative in various different areas.

    According to her, a major focus area is education, which is also health, environment, access to energy and empowerment.

    Arukwe said the foundation has a lot of educational initiatives, this is part of our educational initiative, which are the STEM books.

    Stressing the foundation’s belief in STEM, she said: “We believe so much in the STEM, that’s the science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Because we know it’s one of the programs we run in most of the developed countries in the world, and it’s one of the programs that is really done to make sure that schools are having the right training, the right educational curriculum, that will be able to enhance technological development in most countries.”

    According to her STEM is the way forward for most countries and a very  critical guide to Nigeria.

    Responding, the School For the Gifted, Principal, Malam Adamu Bello, thanked the Foundation for its generous donation of books to the school library.

    He described the donation as a testament to the foundation’s commitment to education and support to the students development and growth.

    Bello however requested the foundation to also  provide the school ICT gadgets such as desktop computers, laptops and internet facilities.

    “As a School for the Gifted as the name implies, we are not asking for too much but our gratitude should supersede any further request from your Foundation.

    “The school lacks ICT gadgets such as desktop computers, laptops and internet facilities. We look forward to receive such gestures from your good office,” he said.

  • Again, pump-pricing

    Again, pump-pricing

    Is rising fuel pump-pricing, following the bungling of the crude-for-Naira policy, to blame for the change in the NNPC Ltd Board?  Who knows?  More on that presently.

    Meanwhile, the transactional temper, in today’s Nigeria, is in a sickly class, all its own.

    Every presidential hire is an angel to be toasted and serenaded.  Every presidential fire is devil to be mocked and scorned, with suggestive tales of alleged sleaze to boot.

    But don’t be deceived.  While holding no brief for any fired officer, this hot-and-cold is often cynical repudiation of a hitherto flowing tap now dried up!  A dried-up tap is seldom angelic to perched throats!  Besides, buzzing bees must find new nectar!

    That has pretty much summed up reactions to the change at NNPC Ltd. 

    The most significant, on the operational plane, is Mele Kyari, NNPC Ltd boss since 2019, all through its transition from a public corporation to a more commercially driven oil trading firm, yielding place to Bayo Ojulari, a Shell Nigeria veteran, with pretty much intimidating credentials.

    Well, Chief Pius Akinyelure, President Bola Tinubu’s boss during their days at Mobil Nigeria, also gave way to Ahmadu Musa Kida, as new NNPC Ltd board chair.

    Ethnic balancers and ace pundits are already foaming in the mouth.  One — prematurely? — growled that Ojulari was yet another Yoruba from the South West — before realizing Ojulari was indeed a Yoruba northerner from Kwara!

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    Other Yoruba — no less clannish in their thinking — would scoff at why the President would trade Akinyelure, his “kinsman”, for Kada from Borno State.

    Pray, what have all these got to do with cognate experience and job competence?But still talking “tribes”: how can Kyari (ex-NNPC),  Akinyelure (ex-Mobil), Ojulari (ex-Shell) and Kada (ex-Total) belong to any tribe but oil and gas? 

    Wasteful and needless voyages, yet perfectly Nigerian!

    Still, no matter what anyone says, NNPC Ltd “original”, Kyari, made his mark since his appointment as GMD, helping to drive NNPC Ltd to its present state. 

    That the company has partly reclaimed three of its four comatose refineries — Port Harcourt 1 and 2, and Warri; with Kaduna still a work-in-process — is ode to grim determination to succeed, even with loud naysayers sizzling with haughty cynicism.

    That doesn’t, however, mean NNPC Ltd is no longer a laggard compared to its global state-owned peers: Aramco (Saudi Arabia), Petrobras (Brazil) Petronas (Malaysia), KPC — Kuwait Petroleum Corporation — (Kuwait), etc.  But under Kyari, it has made distinct progress and the prospects seem quite better.

    Why the board dissolution and Kyari’s ouster, then?  For starters, the man is 60 and his term may have expired.  In any case, the President has the leeway to hire and fire.

    But if indeed it had to do with crude-for-Naira, then it would show a government very much aware of its vulnerabilities, too perilously close to midterm! 

    Despite the elite lullaby of “bold and courageous” showered on the President and his team, the masses are still pretty much bewildered at the post-subsidy direction of the economy, as it concerns their welfare, nay economic survival. 

    Fuel pump-pricing, hitherto trending down, bought the administration some legitimacy, even if grudging, on its tough reforms. 

    Those reforms are driven by harsh neo-liberal methods — not to punish anyone, to be sure, but — to re-set eons of economic disequilibrium.  That comes with pains.

    Still, that method dots on the market’s upper crust — the investing patricians — but thinks little of the plebs that grind and grill in the market’s crucible base.  It’s however convinced that having sated investor greed, benefits would trickle down to the plebs.

    So far, that has not quite happened — in any case, not with thundering collapse of prices, sending the hoi polloi into sheer ecstasy! Right now, there are just the elite, from their crystal balls, telling the masses good times are coming.  Sweet aroma seldom calms a hungry, rumbling tummy!

    Still, the crude-for-Naira policy did open a tantalizing window, making the masses to believe again.  It caused fuel pump prices, thanks to local refining, to trend down — until Dangote Petroleum Refinery (DPR) ended that fleeting paradise, with torrid news.

    DPR warned that it might hike its products’ pricing — which it did — unless the Federal Government kept its end of the bargain, on the crude-for-Naira policy.  Now, pricing is trending up — from mid-N800-a-litre — back to N925-a-litre at the very lowest. 

    If care isn’t taken, it would spiral up to over N1, 000-a-litre, the price at the earliest days of subsidy removal, which sent inflation soaring, burned the pocket and sparked anger. 

    Whodunnit — such that after six months of crude-for-Naira, no new deal?

    If it was NNPC Ltd, it just got its comeuppance.  It has a new board and management team.  Both have their jobs cut out for them.  They had better get cracking!

    The Federal Ministry of Finance-mandated technical team of experts, chaired by Zach Adedeji, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) boss?  DPR roused the Adedeji team to a fresh commitment.  But so far, still no new deal as at the March 31 expiry of the old one.

    That culpable negligence — if indeed, the fault is from there — should not go un-conked.  Petrol is critical to the economy; and every administration official must know the Tinubu Presidency will float or sink, at its careful management.  Petrol’s cost-push inflationary danger is all too glaring!

    The market regulators, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA)?  Might NMDPRA be grappling — as not a few have suggested — with the futures market?

    Does Nigeria simply not produce enough to guarantee the 385, 000 barrels-a-day to feed local refiners, given that a large chunk of crude produced by NNPC Ltd is already sold or battered in advance? 

    If that’s the case, the NMDPRA should come clean.  The public have a right to know.

    Waffling over the crude-or-Naira policy — and its putative collapse — appears the greatest threat yet to the government’s electoral survival.  Should prices start climbing again, the Tinubu Presidency might just be cooked!

    It may appear just mid-term — the second anniversary is May 29.  But the government has barely one year in its furious race against time to smash inflation, and win over hurting pockets, for re-election in 2027.  It must re-fix the crude-for-Naira policy before it’s too late.

    Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the populist but empty Peter Obi are jaded policy souls.  But the administration must never underestimate their cynical capacity for mischief.  President Tinubu can shut both up only with a winning policy.

    Meanwhile, everyone should be worried — NMDPRA especially — that DPR is pumping fresh muscles, by the day, to crash and hike pump pricing. 

    Is there the oligopoly of cement winking, so early at the rebirth of local oil refining? Will local refining yet be captive to a greedy few, that may well sell petrol at prices the cartel well pleases?

    NMDPRA had better act while it still can.  Replicating cement in local crude refining would be the virtual death of the economy — with stagnated incomes and thumping costs!

  • NNPC: The rough road ahead for Ojulari

    NNPC: The rough road ahead for Ojulari

    • By Dan D. Kunle

    By Wednesday, it will be one week since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu sent seismic shockwaves through Nigeria’s oil and gas industry with a decisive shake-up at the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd). The announcement triggered boardroom reshuffles and a clear-out at the top management level. The impact was immediate—and national. From Abuja to Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial nerve centre, stakeholders have been scrambling to recalibrate. Some welcomed the shake-up with cautious optimism. Others reacted with anxiety. All agree: the stakes are high.

    For years, many of us in the industry have called for deep reform. NNPC Ltd.—a company that ought to be the heartbeat of the Nigerian economy—has instead become a cautionary tale. The corporation, once a symbol of state-led ambition, has long lost its competitive edge, weighed down by inefficiencies, overstaffing, opacity, and the dead hand of political interference. Tinubu’s move, though politically risky, signals a belated but necessary acknowledgement that the status quo has failed.

    Let me begin by quoting the president’s directive to the new board: “Restructuring is crucial for enhancing operational efficiency, restoring investor confidence, boosting local content, driving economic growth, and advancing gas commercialisation and diversification.”

    This is a weighty mandate—and it reflects the true scale of the crisis. Alongside this charge, the president added another critical assignment: “Conduct a strategic portfolio review of NNPC-operated and Joint Venture assets to ensure alignment with value maximisation objectives.”

    These are not empty words. They reflect years of accumulated dysfunction and missed opportunities—failures that have brought Nigeria’s hydrocarbon sector to its knees. The president appears ready to let technocrats lead. Now, the question is whether the leadership of NNPC Ltd., under its new Group CEO Bashir Bayo Ojulari (BBO), can rise to the occasion.

    The long decline

    For more than a decade, Nigeria has underperformed in a world rapidly shifting its energy frontiers. While other nations discovered new reserves, developed integrated energy strategies, and adapted to the shale and renewables revolution, Nigeria stalled. Major international oil companies (IOCs), frustrated by insecurity, regulatory inconsistency, and policy flip-flops, began to divest. These are not just business decisions—they are loud warnings that the Nigerian energy environment is no longer attractive.

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    Oil production has dropped from over 2.6 million barrels per day in the 2000s to a current average of 1.7 million. Even this is unstable, vulnerable to theft, vandalism, pipeline sabotage, and community unrest. Natural gas production is also in sharp decline. Nigeria LNG’s six-train complex at Bonny Island—designed to deliver 22 million metric tonnes annually—now operates far below capacity due to inadequate gas feedstock. Investment has dried up across the board.

    At the heart of this is a trust deficit. Host communities feel abandoned. Joint venture partners are disillusioned. Investors are sceptical. NNPC Ltd. has, for years, failed to meet its counterpart funding obligations. It has also failed to operate as a truly commercial entity, despite its transition into a limited liability company under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA). The result? A sector in freefall.

    This is the terrain that Ojulari must now navigate. His appointment as Group CEO comes at a time of immense fragility, but also possibility. There is a window—brief and narrow—to reset the narrative. But make no mistake: the task is enormous.

    First, he must rebuild confidence. This will not happen with speeches or photo-ops. It requires action. Trust must be re-established with internal staff, the board, the National Assembly, oil-producing communities, IOC partners, PSC managers, off-takers, and financiers. Each group is watching closely, and each expects something tangible.

    Second, the upstream segment must be revived. NNPC E&P assets in Benin and other areas need urgent attention. Dormant fields must be activated. OML 11, long held up due to political and environmental issues, should become a symbol of a new approach—one built on transparency, negotiation, and execution. Likewise, valuable yet idle blocks like OPLs 245, 321, and 323 should be resolved. These Atlantic Basin blocks have the potential to reposition Nigeria’s oil future, if only the government and the regulator can break the legal logjam.

    In addition to exploration and production, gas must be taken seriously. Nigeria’s gas reserves are among the largest in the world. Yet they remain underutilised. A comprehensive gas development strategy—focused on domestic use, industrialisation, and export—is overdue.

    Don’t compete with private capital

    Just as the upstream needs revival, the midstream and downstream sectors demand a different approach. For too long, the federal government and NNPC have tried to control every link in the value chain. This must end. The midstream and downstream are now dominated by private players who have staked enormous capital—often borrowed at high interest rates—to build depots, pipelines, and filling stations. These investors should not be undercut by a state-funded competitor that operates without commercial discipline.

    A truly reformed NNPC Ltd. must leave fuel importation, retail marketing, and depot operations to the private sector. Where the state is needed—such as in regulatory oversight, quality control, or strategic reserves—it should act with restraint and professionalism.

    One success story stands out: the Dangote Refinery. At $20 billion, it is Africa’s largest industrial project and a powerful symbol of what private capital can achieve. NNPC Ltd. should collaborate with Dangote, not compete. Crude-for-products exchanges, equity swaps, and supply agreements could all be explored. This is the model for the future.

    A house in need of repair

    NNPC Ltd. itself is a sprawling, bureaucratic behemoth. Its corporate structure is bloated. Its operations are riddled with inefficiencies. Many of its subsidiaries are redundant. Internal accountability is weak. Digital transformation is long overdue. BBO must undertake a comprehensive audit of staffing, operations, and procurement practices. Streamlining is not just desirable—it is existential.

    Reducing the cost of production is key. Nigeria’s oil currently costs over $30 per barrel to produce—among the highest in the world. This makes our crude uncompetitive, especially when benchmark prices are volatile. BBO must cut costs, eliminate waste, and standardise operations to global benchmarks.

    Moreover, BBO’s leadership style will matter. He must be decisive, transparent, and professional. He must insulate the company from politics—no easy task in Nigeria—and let performance, not patronage, guide decision-making. If he succeeds, he will redefine what is possible in Nigerian state enterprise management.

    Time is a luxury BBO does not have. With the 2026 election cycle looming, attention will soon shift away from policy to politics. If reforms are not initiated quickly—within the next 12 to 18 months—they may never happen. Vested interests, both inside and outside government, will regroup and resist change.

    This is why the president must not only appoint professionals—he must protect them. If BBO is to succeed, he needs political cover. He must be allowed to operate with independence. Meddling must end. Institutional sabotage must be punished.

    A test of national will

    As someone who has advised and studied this industry for more than 25 years, I have seen its peaks and its plunges. I know what is possible. But I also know what is likely, if courage fails. Nigeria is on the verge of energy irrelevance—not because we lack resources, but because we have squandered time.

    We are sitting on ageing infrastructure built in the 1970s and 80s. Pipelines are leaking. Refineries are obsolete. Power plants lack gas. Meanwhile, the global energy conversation is shifting—towards decarbonisation, green hydrogen, and energy storage. We are being left behind.

    If BBO and his team can arrest this decline—if they can restore credibility, efficiency, and commercial focus—NNPC Ltd. will not just survive, it will lead. But if they fail, the cost will be monumental: lost revenue, lost jobs, lost national relevance.

    This is not just about fixing a company. It is about rescuing a country.

  • Stakeholders chart course for NNPC

    Stakeholders chart course for NNPC

    As the new Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Bayo Ojulari, settles in following the official handover by his predecessor, Mele Kyari, stakeholders in the industry have called on the new helmsman to evolve strategies that will lead to run the firm and by extension the sector efficiently. 

    For Ojulari, attaining the matching order from the government to increase the NNPC’s share of crude oil refining output to 200,000 barrels by 2027 and reach 500,000 by 2030, requires that polices directions are execution of such are very critical in to achieve this.

    This is why stakeholders have clamoured that ensuring energy security, availability of petroleum products at all times, shoring up of the nation’s crude oil production output, generating good revenue for government, sustenance of local refineries, amongst others, should be top on the table.

    Crude oil production in Nigeria currently averages 1.75 million barrels per day (BOPD), with a gas production rate of seven billion standard cubic feet per day (SCFD). According to industry experts the NNPCL under its new leadership, should significantly boost crude oil production by implementing a mix of strategic, operational, and policy driven initiatives.

    They canvassed that to increase Nigeria’s crude oil production, tackling oil theft, enhancing security, attracting investment, and implementing reforms to improve efficiency and transparency are very crucial in attaining the 2.2mbpd government target this year.

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    The charge to Ojulari on production output is understandable. In February 2025, Nigeria’s average daily crude oil production was 1.46 million barrels. This was a decrease from the 1.539 million bpd produced in January 2025. According to OPEC, the country’s production in February 2025 exceeded its quota by 70,000 barrels per day.

    Besides, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), has equally set a target to boost production by one million barrels per day by December 2026.

    Importantly, it is imperative to put the country’s oil production, which seen fluctuations over the years, on a steady and upward balance. Available data from CEIC shows that Nigeria’s crude oil production averaged 1.885 million barrels per day from January 2002 to January 2025.  The all-time high was 2.496 million barrels per day in November 2005, while the record low was 1.015 million barrels per day in September 2022.

    This is why stakeholders insist that oil theft and pipeline vandalism, which has plagued Nigeria’s oil industry, leading to production declines, must be tackled frontally. In 2022, for instance, oil theft challenges led to a drastic drop in crude oil production to 1.1 million BOPD.

    Yet, the issue of local refinery begs for attention.  Although the past administration was able to bring the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries to live, stakeholders insist that getting the four government refineries to function at full capacity should be the target of Ojulari, while ensuring that new ones come on stream. Besides, they want a synergy between all existing refineries in the country to be put in place.

    Industry experts are also insisting that the new leadership NNPCL adopt a hybrid approach and build on effective strategies from the previous administration while introducing bold, innovative measures to tackle persistent and emerging challenges. They caution against discarding all existing initiatives, noting that continuity is essential to maintain momentum, avoid disruption, and uphold existing partnerships.

    As a commercial entity, Chief Executive Officer, centre for the Promotion of Private enterprise (CPPE), Dr. Muda Yusuf, argued that the company needed to be run profitably like its contemporaries the Saudi Arabia’s Aramco or the Brazilian Petrobras.

    He added that while it is notable that the previous administration expressed the preparation to be listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the Ojulari administration should ensure that this is consummated as it will signal that the firm is properly put on the trajectory of being run like a truly limited liability company set up to make profits like other business entities in the country.

    Still, experts have also called for the recommencement of the naira for crude sale policy, which is presently stalled. In this regard, stakeholders urged the new management to fine-tune the ‘naira for crude’ policy to enhance its transparency, effectiveness and efficiency.

    The President, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Abubakar Maigandi, while canvassing for the continuation of the naira-for-crude arrangement, said it remains of immense benefit to the country and particularly, to the consumers.

    He also made a case for his association, that it be carried along in the direct purchase of petrol from the firm, noting that this will rub off positively on the consuming public.

     “IPMAN should be considered for the direct purchase of petrol from the NNPCL. This is because we have the largest network of retail distribution channels in the country. IPMAN controls over 80 per cent of the petroleum retail outlet. So if we have direct purchase from the NNPC it will positively impact the market and economy,” Maigandi said.

    Additionally, the new leadership is encouraged to modernise existing infrastructure and adopt digital oilfield technologies—including artificial intelligence and data analytics. Streamlining procurement and project execution processes is seen as vital to minimising downtime and eliminating bottlenecks.

  • Dafinone hails Austin Avuru’s NNPC appointment

    Dafinone hails Austin Avuru’s NNPC appointment

    Senator Ede Dafinone (Delta Central) has congratulated Mr. Austin Avuru on his appointment as a Non-Executive Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Limited by President Bola Tinubu.

    The Senator commended Avuru’s appointment, recognising his extensive experience in the oil and gas industry and expressing confidence in his ability to contribute meaningfully to the growth and transformation of NNPC Limited.

    Dafinone also extended his congratulations to Engineer Bashir Bayo Ojulari, who has been appointed as the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of NNPC Limited as well as Ahmadu Musa Kida, who emerged as the Non-Executive Chairman.

    He expressed optimism the newly constituted leadership team would bring their expertise and vision to advance the objectives of the corporation in line with President Tinubu’s directives.

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    The Senator urged Avuru and the new board to leverage their vast knowledge and experience in the oil and gas sector to drive critical reforms that will enhance efficiency, transparency, and growth in the industry.

    He emphasised the importance of aligning their strategies with national energy goals to ensure sustainable development and maximize the sector’s contributions to Nigeria’s economy.

    Austin Avuru, a geologist by training, boasts over 40 years of experience in the Nigerian oil and gas sector. As the pioneer CEO of Seplat Ltd, a company he co-founded, Avuru played a pivotal role in its dual listing on the London and Nigerian Stock Exchanges.

    A respected industry leader, he is a fellow and past President of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE), a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG), and the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE). Senator Dafinone expressed his confidence in Avuru’s capacity to bring his wealth of expertise to bear in his new role at NNPC Limited, fostering growth and innovation in Nigeria’s petroleum industry.

  • FULL LIST: Profile of new NNPC board members

    FULL LIST: Profile of new NNPC board members

    President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the reconstitution of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited board, removing the chairman, Chief Pius Akinyelure, and the group chief executive officer, Malam Mele Kyari.

    A statement by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, indicated that the President  removed all other board members appointed with Akinyelure and Kyari in November 2023.

    The new 11-man board has Bashir Bayo Ojulari as the Group CEO and Ahmadu Musa Kida as non-executive chairman.

    Here’s a profile of the new NNPC Limited board members:

    1. Bashir Bayo Ojulari – Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO)

    Ojulari, a mechanical engineer and alumnus of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, hails from Kwara State. Before his appointment, he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Renaissance Africa Energy Company, which led the $2.4 billion acquisition of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC).

    His career includes roles at Elf Aquitaine and Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), where he worked in Nigeria, Europe, and the Middle East in various capacities. In 2015, he became Managing Director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO).

    2. Ahmadu Musa Kida – Non-Executive Chairman

    Kida, from Borno State, is a civil engineering graduate of Ahmadu Bello University with a postgraduate diploma in petroleum engineering from Institut Francaise du Petrol (IFP), Paris. His career spans roles at Elf Petroleum Nigeria and Total Exploration and Production, where he rose to Deputy Managing Director of Deep Water Services in 2015.

    Kida has also served as an Independent Non-Executive Director at Pan Ocean-Newcross Group and is a former President of the Nigerian Basketball Federation (NBBF).

    3. Adedapo Segun – Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

    Segun previously worked with Chevron as Financial Services Manager before joining NNPC as Group General Manager, Treasury. He also served as Chief Finance and Investor Relations Officer and Executive Vice-President of Downstream.

    4. Bello Rabiu (North West)

    A former Chief Operating Officer/Group Executive Director, Upstream at NNPC, Rabiu oversaw key subsidiaries, including NAPIMS, NPDC, NETCO, and IDSL. He retired in 2019 after 28 years of service.

    5. Yusuf Usman (North East)

    With over 30 years of experience, Usman began his career at Shell before joining NNPC in 1993. He played key roles in projects for ExxonMobil, Total, Chevron, and Shell, managing developments in Nigeria, Dubai, France, Greece, South Korea, and the U.S.

    6. Babs Omotowa (North Central)

    Omotowa, an international energy leader, served as Managing Director/CEO of Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) from 2011 to 2016. He was previously Vice-President, Shell Sub-Saharan Africa and later a Special Adviser to Shell Global Upstream Director.

    Read Also: FULL LIST: 11 new NNPC Limited board members

    7. Austin Avuru (South-South)

    A geologist with over 40 years of experience, Avuru was the pioneer CEO of Seplat, leading the company’s London and Nigerian Stock Exchange listings. He remains a board member at Seplat and has authored books on Nigeria’s petroleum industry.

    8. David Ige (South West)

    A former Group Executive Director at NNPC, Ige played a major role in developing Nigeria’s Gas Master Plan. His expertise spans exploration, production, and infrastructure development.

    9. Henry Obih (South East)

    Obih served as Group Executive Director/Chief Operating Officer, Downstream at NNPC before retiring in 2019. He previously spent 22 years at ExxonMobil, holding leadership roles in operations, customer service, and logistics.

  • Olopade Congratulates NBBF boss Kida on appointment as NNPC Chairman

    Olopade Congratulates NBBF boss Kida on appointment as NNPC Chairman

    The Director General of the National Sports Commission( NSC)  Hon. Bukola Olopade, has congratulated the President of the Nigeria Basketball Federation ( NBBF), Eng. Musa Kida, on his appointment as the new Board Chairman of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL)by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

    Olopade said Kida has been one of Nigeria’s most efficient and productive sports administrators who has sacrificed a lot for the growth of Nigerian Basketball.

    He maintained that his latest appointment is a testament to his years of passion, hard work, dedication and a very successful track record in the oil sector for more than two decades.

    He said: ” Eng. Musa Kida is an accomplished administrator whose achievements cut across both the oil sector and Nigerian basketball. I   have no doubt that the NNPC Limited will attain better efficiency and  attract more investment under his watch.

    ” Under his leadership as the President of the Nigeria Basketball Federation, we  have seen the steady growth of the Country’s basketball and how the National teams have continued to achieve new heights.

    ” At the last Olympic Games in France, the Nigeria Women Basketball team, D’Tigress was one of the shining stories for Team Nigeria, where they set a new record by making it to the knockout phase before losing to the United States.

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    ” I personally know the efforts behind the scene that Eng.  Kida put in for Nigeria to achieve that feat with the girls in France and the Nigerian girls have been an unrivalled team on the continent for some time now.”

    The DG added that he has no doubt that Eng. Kida will use his new position to further earnest the development of Nigerian Sports especially basketball especially now that there is a new focus of growing a sustainable Sports Economy.

    ” Whilst the Oil sector will benefit immensely from the Expertise of Eng. Musa Kida as the new Board Chairman of the NNPC Limited, Mr President, has further helped to place Nigerian Sports in a better pedestal by putting one of us in a very strategic place like the NNPC,” he concluded.

  • Mixed reactions trail reconstitution of NNPC management, board

    Mixed reactions trail reconstitution of NNPC management, board

    Mixed reactions have trailed changes in the management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.) and its board by President Bola Tinubu.

    The President had on Wednesday reconstituted the board of the NNPC Ltd., removing the Chairman, Chief Pius Akinyelure and the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), Malam Mele Kyari.

    Tinubu removed all the board members appointed with Akinyelure and Kyari in November 2023.

    The new 11-man board has Mr Bayo Ojulari as thevGroup Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) and Ahmadu Kida as Non-Executive Chairman.

    Some experts have reacted to the development in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)non Wednesday in Abuja.

    Mr Olabode Sowunmi, an Oil and Gas Expert described the development as a calculated effort to put some life and energy into the oil and gas industry.

    Sowunmi, CEO, Cabtree, described it as a welcome development.

    He said that the NNPC Ltd. was a limited liability company with the
    Federal Government as its major shareholder.

    “It is a calculated effort to put some life and energy into the industry.

    “It is expected that this will mean new thinking, new focus and more results,” he said.

    According to Sowunmi, even the proposed Initial Public Offer (IPO) which is targeted at listing NNPC in the stock market, will not have prevented Kyari’s removal, as he is a government appointee.

    “The government can remove any government appointee at anytime,” he said.

    Yushau Aliyu, an economic expert said the changes were timely, especially when the IPO was underway.

    “However, the IPO must be professionally determined by relating to the development in the oil market as well as the willingness of the general public.

    “Investment potential with the economic growth targets of Nigeria 2030 should also be considered,” he said.

    He said that the President was empowered by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA 2021) to dissolve both the NNPC Ltd. board and the CEO.

    Another expert, Dr Sand Mba-Kalu, said that Nigeria’s oil and gas sector needed stability and predictability, along with strict adherence to legal standards, to attract sustainable investment and encourage transformation.

    According to him, the move represents a bold initiative within the larger framework of aiming to meet our national production and refining targets in the energy sector by 2027 and 2030.

    Mr Lawrence Nze, an Economist said that most of the policies introduced under Kyari never solved the challenges in the oil sector.

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    Nze said that the Naira for crude policy appeared not to be working since it had not resulted to any serious reduction in price.

    According to him, Dangote Refinery was gradually achieving that with its slight reduction in ex-depot price which usually affects pump price, but suddenly, authorities in the oil sector cancelled it.

    “To me, it looks like a sabotage against the people. Why can we not stop importation? It means that there is a deal that someone or group of people are benefiting from.

    “It is not rocket science to get the energy sector working. Nigerians want cheaper petroleum products, is that too much to ask for?

    “Only President Tinubu knows why he sacked Kyari, and whatever be the reason, Nigerians should have access to cheaper petroleum products, especially fuel.

    “I will advise the president to ensure that the Naira for crude policy works in the country to enable local refineries operate on a cheaper scale,” he said.

    (NAN)