New CEO of NNPC reportedly discharges refinery managers weeks following his appointment - Insiders' disclosures
Just a few weeks into his tenure as the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd, Bayo Ojulari has set the industry abuzz by relieving the managing directors of the country's three major refineries - Kaduna, Port Harcourt, and Warri - of their duties.
Insiders close to the situation reveal that this shakeup is part of a broader strategy to address the persistent issue of "value erosion" within the nation's refining operations. Despite substantial financial investments by the previous administration under Mele Kyari, internal sources indicate that these facilities are still not operating at their full potential.
With Ojulari at the helm, the refineries are due for a complete review of their current condition and an exploration of efficient management models. The main objective is to stop the short-term loss of value and establish a long-term strategy to restore and amplify value for the federation.
In order to drive this initiative, Ojulari has formed a high-level task force headed by Executive Vice President, Downstream, Mumuni Dagazzau. The team will conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the operational status of the refineries and provide well-informed recommendations for improvement. This move follows earlier reports by our website about a wave of top-level dismissals within the organization.
Among the affected individuals were Bala Wunti, formerly of the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Ibrahim Onoja, managing director of the Kaduna Refinery and Lawal Sade, the former MD of NNPC Trading who was serving as the group's chief compliance officer. Over 200 personnel have been impacted by the ongoing overhaul thus far, with expectations of more changes to come.
Meanwhile, calls are growing for an investigation into the leadership period of Mele Kyari as GCEO. As Ojulari moves forward, his strategy revolves around long-term value maximization, operational improvements, and positioning NNPC as a competitive, globally integrated energy company.
New Faces in the NNPC: A Focus on Commercial Efficiency and Board Governance Standardization
Under Ojulari's leadership, key appointments have been made to align expertise with operational goals. Maryam Idrisu has been named as the new Managing Director of NNPC Trading and Obioma Abangwu has been appointed as the Chief Liaison Officer, signaling a focus on commercial efficiency and board governance standardization.
The Road Ahead: Challenges and Opportunities
Ojulari faces challenges such as legacy corruption, underfunded projects, and operational bottlenecks in aging refineries. Nevertheless, with the backing of Tinubu, Ojulari has the political clout to enforce reforms and restore investor confidence. His strategy embraces merit-based leadership, financial discipline, and sector diversification to tackle these challenges head-on.
In the pursuit of operational efficiency, Ojulari's strategy includes debt reduction, cost-cutting, and counterpart funding discipline to improve NNPC's financial health. The company also aims to expand its gas market operations and attract private investments to reduce reliance on crude oil exports. To meet domestic demand, priority is given to refinery rehabilitation, while investments in new energy sectors, like renewables, are accelerated to align with global decarbonization trends.
As NNPC embarks on this transformative journey, it is poised to shed its legacy as an inefficient, debt-laden entity and emerge as a competitive, globally integrated energy powerhouse.
- Bayo Ojulari, the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd, has resigned three of the country's major refinery managing directors, namely Kaduna, Port Harcourt, and Warri, as part of a broader strategy to address persistent value erosion in Nigerian refining operations.
- With the departure of Mele Kyari, Ojulari has formed a high-level task force headed by Executive Vice President, Downstream, Mumuni Dagazzau, to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the operational status of the refineries and provide well-informed recommendations for improvement.
- To drive long-term value maximization, Ojulari has appointed Maryam Idrisu as the new Managing Director of NNPC Trading and Obioma Abangwu as the Chief Liaison Officer, focusing on commercial efficiency and board governance standardization within the company.
- Ojulari faces challenges such as legacy corruption, underfunded projects, and operational bottlenecks in aging refineries, yet he embraces merit-based leadership, financial discipline, and sector diversification to tackle these issues head-on, aiming for NNPC to become a competitive, globally integrated energy company.
- In the road ahead, NNPC aims to position itself as a globally competitive energy powerhouse, reducing reliance on crude oil exports, expanding gas market operations, attracting private investments, rehabilitating refineries, investing in new energy sectors like renewables, and aligning with global decarbonization trends.
