Abdullahi Hashim, a member of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), has lauded President Bola Tibubu’s appointment of Bayo Ojulari as the group chief executive officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and Ahmadu Kida as the non-executive chairman of the board.
He said the appointments were a step in the right direction, adding that they could transform the national firm into a profitable venture.
Hashim, who is a member of the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), spoke during a chat with journalists in Abuja on Monday.
He commended Tinubu for ensuring that individuals with vast engineering, technical and leadership experience would manage the NNPCL affairs, saying the new leadership would usher in a transformative era for the national firm, fostering efficiency, transparency, and innovation in the oil and gas sector.
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Hashim said: “It is refreshing to note that individuals with vast engineering, technical, and leadership experience are now at the helm of the NNPCL. I wish to say with high sense of responsibility that the appointments aligned with global best practices in energy governance.
“The strategic appointments were pivotal to achieving sustainable energy security, infrastructural growth, and economic development.”
Hashim said he is confident that his two professional colleagues will live up to expectations and achieve the targets set for them by President Tinubu.
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“Ojulari and Kida are very competent for the jobs. They are active players in the oil industry with the requisite experience. They know what is at stake and the targets set for them by President Tinubu. I’m confident that the duo and other members of the management team will meet the targets and take the NNPCL to a greater height,” he said.
“We all know that the oil industry is volatile and quite challenging. Former GCEO, Mele Kyari and his management team have done their best. Ojulari, Kida and the new management team are now in charge and will use their expertise and wide knowledge of the oil industry to take us forward in our quest to maximise the advantages of being one of the world’s producers of crude oil.
“They will surely ensure good results from the NNPCL’s refineries in Port Harcourt and Warri and the timely completion of the rehabilitation of Kaduna Refinery. The tasks are enormous but they have the capacity to deliver on set objectives.
“It is important to note that Ojulari has distinguished himself as the right man for the job, having pilot affairs as the Managing Director of SNEPCo and General Manager, Deepwater. He also served on the board of Shell Petroleum Development Company, overseeing onshore and offshore petroleum engineering, technical integration of development, well engineering, and project engineering.
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“Don’t forget that Kida’s experience spanned over 32 years in the oil and gas industry. He also joined Elf Petroleum Nigeria Limited, now Total Exploration & Production Nigeria (TEPNG), in 1985. In the first 15 years of his career at Total, he played key roles in many company projects, including the OBITE Gas Plant Project (Onshore Nigeria), the AMENAM/KPONO Phase 1 Project (Offshore Nigeria), and the OML 58 Upgrade Project located Onshore Nigeria.”