Tinubu Overhauls NNPCL Leadership; Replaces Mele Kyari with Ojulari as GCEO, Appoints Kida as New Board Chairman

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In a major shake-up of Nigeria’s oil industry leadership announced in a statement by the special adviser to the President, Bayo Onanuga, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu reconstituted the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited board, replacing its chairman, Pius Akinyelure, and Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kolo Kyari.

The president also dismissed all other board members appointed alongside them in November 2023.

The newly appointed 11-member board now features Engineer Bashir Bayo Ojulari as the new Group CEO and Ahmadu Musa Kida as the non-executive chairman. Adedapo Segun, who took over as Chief Financial Officer last November, has been retained in the new board structure.

Representing the country’s six geopolitical zones, the appointed non-executive directors include Bello Rabiu (Northwest), Yusuf Usman (Northeast), and Babs Omotowa, former managing director of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG), representing the North Central region. In the southern regions, Austin Avuru (South-South), David Ige (Southwest), and Henry Obih (Southeast) will serve as non-executive directors.

Additionally, Mrs. Lydia Shehu Jafiya, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, and Aminu Said Ahmed from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources will represent their respective ministries on the board. The appointments take effect immediately from April 2, 2025.

Onanuga said President Tinubu exercised his authority under Section 59, Subsection 2 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, citing the need for enhanced operational efficiency, increased investor confidence, strengthened local content, and expanded gas commercialization efforts.

The president directed the new board to prioritise a strategic portfolio review of NNPC’s operations and joint venture assets to align with value maximization goals.

Since assuming office in 2023, Tinubu’s administration has pursued oil sector reforms aimed at attracting investment. Last year, NNPC secured $17 billion in fresh investments, and the government now aims to increase that figure to $30 billion by 2027 and $60 billion by 2030.

The administration is targeting an increase in crude oil production to two million barrels per day by 2027 and three million by 2030. Gas production is also expected to rise to eight billion cubic feet per day by 2027 and 10 billion by 2030.

Additionally, Tinubu has tasked the new board with raising NNPC’s share of domestic crude oil refining output to 200,000 barrels per day by 2027 and 500,000 barrels per day by 2030.

Ahmadu Musa Kida, the newly appointed board chairman, hails from Borno State and holds a civil engineering degree from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, as well as a postgraduate diploma in petroleum engineering from the Institut Français du Pétrole (IFP) in Paris.

He began his oil industry career with Elf Petroleum Nigeria before joining Total Exploration and Production in 1985. He later became Total Nigeria’s Deputy Managing Director of Deep-Water Services and, in 2023, an Independent Non-Executive Director at Pan Ocean-Newcross Group.

Outside the oil industry, Kida is a former basketball player and served as president of the Nigerian Basketball Federation (NBBF).

Bashir Bayo Ojulari, the new NNPC Group CEO, is from Kwara State and was previously the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Renaissance Africa Energy Company.

Under his leadership, Renaissance spearheaded the $2.4 billion acquisition of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC). Ojulari, also an alumnus of Ahmadu Bello University, started his career as a process engineer at Elf Aquitaine before joining Shell Petroleum Development Company in 1991.

Over the years, he worked in Europe and the Middle East in roles spanning petroleum engineering, field development, and asset management. In 2015, he became the Managing Director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO).

President Tinubu expressed gratitude to the outgoing board members for their service, particularly their contributions to the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries, which resumed production after years of inactivity. He wished them success in their future endeavors.

With these sweeping changes, the Tinubu administration signals its commitment to revitalizing the petroleum sector, restoring investor confidence, and driving Nigeria’s energy transformation in the coming years.