Profile of 9 newly appointed NNPC board members [Full List]

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the reconstitution of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited board, which includes the removal of Chairman, Chief Pius Akinyelure, and Group Chief Executive Officer, Malam Mele Kyari.

According to a statement from Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, all other board members appointed alongside Akinyelure and Kyari in November 2023 were also removed.

The newly restructured 11-man board sees Bashir Bayo Ojulari appointed as the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), while Ahmadu Musa Kida will serve as the non-executive chairman.

Profile of the New NNPC Limited Board Members:

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

A mechanical engineer and graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Ojulari hails from Kwara State. He previously served as Executive Vice President and COO of Renaissance Africa Energy Company, leading the $2.4 billion acquisition of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria. His career includes roles at Elf Aquitaine and Shell Petroleum Development Company, both in Nigeria and abroad.

2. Ahmadu Musa Kida – Non-Executive Chairman

From Borno State, Kida holds a civil engineering degree from Ahmadu Bello University and a postgraduate diploma in petroleum engineering from the Institut Francaise du Petrol, Paris. His career spans various roles at Elf Petroleum Nigeria and Total Exploration and Production, where he rose to Deputy Managing Director of Deep Water Services in 2015. He has also served as an Independent Non-Executive Director at Pan Ocean-Newcross Group and as a former President of the Nigerian Basketball Federation.

3. Adedapo Segun – Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Segun has extensive experience in the energy sector, having previously worked as Financial Services Manager at Chevron and later as Group General Manager of Treasury at NNPC. He also served as Chief Finance and Investor Relations Officer and Executive Vice-President of Downstream at NNPC.

4. Bello Rabiu (North West)

Rabiu, a former Chief Operating Officer/Group Executive Director at NNPC, oversaw key subsidiaries such as 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 in the oil and gas industry, Usman has worked with Shell, NNPC, and international oil companies like ExxonMobil, Total, Chevron, and Shell, managing large-scale projects across multiple countries.

6. Babs Omotowa (North Central)

Omotowa, an international energy expert, previously served as the Managing Director/CEO of Nigeria LNG Limited. He was also Vice-President at Shell Sub-Saharan Africa and a Special Adviser to the Shell Global Upstream Director.

7. Austin Avuru (South-South)

Avuru, a geologist with more than 40 years of experience, was the founding CEO of Seplat and led the company’s listings on the London and Nigerian Stock Exchanges. He is also a board member at Seplat and an author on Nigeria’s petroleum industry.

8. David Ige (South West)

A former Group Executive Director at NNPC, Ige played a key role in the development of Nigeria’s Gas Master Plan. His expertise covers exploration, production, and infrastructure development.

9. Henry Obih (South East)

Obih, a former Group Executive Director at NNPC, previously spent 22 years at ExxonMobil, where he held leadership roles in operations, customer service, and logistics. He retired in 2019.

This reconstitution marks a significant shift in the leadership of NNPC Limited, with the new board expected to bring fresh perspectives to the country’s oil and gas sector.