Performance failures and missed production targets prompted President Tinubu’s removal of NNPC’s Mele Kyari and entire board, according to presidential sources.
President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday fired Mele Kyari as Group CEO of NNPC Limited alongside the entire board, citing chronic underperformance in meeting Nigeria’s oil production goals. The sweeping overhaul introduces Bashir Ojulari, a Shell acquisition expert, as new helmsman with a mandate to triple output by 2030.
Presidency sources confirm the purge was strictly performance-based, with industry veteran Bashir Ojulari appointed as the new helmsman. The reconstituted 11-member board features heavyweights including:
- Babs Omotowa (ex-NLNG CEO)
- Austin Avuru (Seplat co-founder)
- Other sector specialists
Sources further confirmed that the president made his move following months of frustration over stagnant production. “The previous board was taking us in circles, and some of them had become part of the problem, rather than the solution,” an official disclosed anonymously. “We need 2 million barrels/day by 2027 – they couldn’t deliver.”
The new leadership inherits a crisis-ridden sector requiring urgent action on:
✔ Reviving Nigeria’s refinery capacity
✔ Resolving the stalled crude-for-naira deal with Dangote Refinery
✔ Attracting $60 billion in sector investments by 2030
✔ Addressing widespread oil theft and infrastructure decay
Analysts describe the new board as Nigeria’s most technocratic NNPC leadership yet, with experts like Prof. Wumi Iledare expressing optimism that the team can deliver “the intent of PIA 2021.” Tinubu acknowledged Kyari’s efforts in refinery rehabilitation but emphasized the need for “new direction” to transform Nigeria’s oil sector.