Breaking: President Tinubu Sacks NNPC Boss Mele Kyari Amid Fuel Saga With Dangote

• President Bola Tinubu has sacked Mele Kyari from his position as the GCEO of the NNPC and all board members appointed in 2023
• The president subsequently announced the appointment of Bayo Ojulari as the new boss of the NNPC and Kyari's replacement
• Aside from Ojulari, the President also appointed new executive and non-executive board members to lead the national oil company

Aso-Rock, Abuja - President of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu has sacked Mele Kyari as Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) boss and appointed Bashir Bayo Ojulari as the new GCEO and Ahmadu Musa Kida as the non-executive chairman.

The president also sacked all board members who were appointed alongside Kyari in November 2023. This latest development happened amid the ongoing saga between the NNPC Limited and Dangote Refinery, a major private-owned refinery in Nigeria.

The NNPC earlier agreed to sell Nigeria's crude oil to the refinery in naira, with the hope of stabilising the currency and reducing fuel prices in Nigeria.

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NNPC ends crude for naira deal with Dangote

However, the deal ended a month ago, and the two companies did not renew the contract, which has led to an increase in the price of fuel.

Retailers are now importing fuel rather than buying from Dangote, with the private refinery also selling in dollars following the end of the deal.

On April 2, the presidency announced a major shakeup in Nigeria's major oil company as Tinubu's administration sacked all the board members and made fresh appointments.

Before now, there were speculations that Kyari would be sacked, which grew after he reached retirement age. However, the President did not appear ready to remove the NNPC boss at the time.

However, after Kyari's sacking, Adedapo Segun, who took over the role of Chief Financial Officer from Umaru Isa Ajiya last November, has been appointed to the oil firm's new board.

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Tinubu appoints six board members for NNPC

Six board members, who are non-executive directors, represent the country's geopolitical zones. They include Bello Rabiu (North West), Yusuf Usman (North East) and Babs Omotowa, a former managing director of the Nigerian Liquified Natural Gas who represents North Central.

President Tinubu also appointed Austin Avuru as a non-executive director from the South-South, David Ige as a non-executive director from the South West, and Henry Obih as a non-executive director from the South East.

Lydia Shehu Jafiya, a permanent secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, will represent the ministry on the new board, while Aminu Said Ahmed will represent the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

The full statement regarding the new NNPC structure is included below:

NNPC Shakeup: Expert predicts downstream sector reforms

Financial analyst David Olujinmi has shared insights on the recent NNPC leadership shakeup and its potential impact on Nigeria’s forex and fuel imports.

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"We're yet to see the direction of the new board. It's still early days," Olujinmi told Legit.ng.

He noted that with “technocrats” now in charge, key changes are expected.

"We should see a shaking up in the downstream sector," he said.

However, Olujinmi pointed out that upstream operations may take greater priority under the new leadership.

"Although it's expected that the upstream business unit of the NNPC will take more priority," the analyst added.

Tinubu sends congratulatory message to Mele Kyari

Legit.ng previously reported that President Bola Tinubu sent a congratulatory message to Kyari, now former NNPC boss, on his 60th birthday.

In a statement from the presidency, Tinubu praised the diligence of Kyari in transforming Nigeria's national oil firm into a profitable entity.

The president described Kyari as a good example of his Renewed Hope Agenda, citing his achievement of creating more opportunities in the NNPC.

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Editorial assistant Ololade Olatimehin provided exclusive commentary from a financial analyst for this report.

Proofreading by James Ojo, copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng