Ojulari: Understanding a reformer’s efforts at NNPC’s redemption

BY BENJAMIN ADEBAYO

In a country where people see public office as an invitation to have a bite of the proverbial national cake, it would be forgivable if friends and associates of Engr. Bashir Bayo Ojulari, the Group Chief Executive Officer, GCEO of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Limited), felt their man had hit it real big when his appointment was made this year by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Those who might have had this mindset might also be pardoned going by the thinking of an average Nigerian when it comes to public office. For instance, hardly do people see public office as an invitation to serve and add value. Rather, they see it as an opportunity to enjoy the perks of office, dispense favour, empower rent seekers and raise nepotism into an embarrassing level.

But from all indications, it is very clear that Ojulari might be of a different breed. A breed of excellence and service. Not only is he handling the affairs of the oil and gas behemoth with the dispatch of a military general on a strategic national service, but he has also hit the ground running with massive positive strides in the new NNPC Limited. Indeed, one will not be wrong to say that Ojulari’s appointment at helm of affairs in NNPC Limited is one of the best decisions of President Tinubu. The oil and gas sector is strategic to Nigeria’s progress and growth, and President Tinubu got it right in Ojulari’s appointment.

Those who knew the background of this consummate technocrat would not be surprised by what is happening, albeit positively, in NNPC Limited under his watch. A graduate of Mechanical Engineering from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, his career took off in 1989 when he was employed as field and process engineer at Elf Petroleum. He was to later move to Shell in 1991 as an associate production technologist. A Fellow of Nigerian Society of Engineers, his Shell career took him to outside the country before serving on the company’s integrated studies team at its headquarters in the Netherland between 1994 and 1995.

He became the head of planning, economics and budgeting of Shell and was in that position till 1999 when he moved to the Middle East, precisely Oman, where he was head, production technologists and asset leader. Four years later, He moved to Shell headquarters as a regional planner for sub-Saharan Africa.

In 2015, Ojulari became the Managing Director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO) – the Deepwater vehicle of Shell in Nigeria. Within this period, he served as a member of the board of directors of Shell Petroleum Development Company responsible for Onshore and Offshore Petroleum Engineering, Technical Integration of Development, Well and Project Engineering. Perhaps, this was the period when Ojulari’s leadership qualities would become noticeable. While his time lasted in SNEPCO, Nigeria’s first deepwater project, Bonga field, increased its production capacity to about 200,000 barrels per day, and with an increased efficiency he was able to reduce production cost by 30 per cent.

When he left Shell in 2021, he established BAT Advisory and Energy, a technical consultancy firm. It was a private outfit that focused on upstream and midstream technical advisory services. Three years later, in 2024, he moved to Renaissance African Energy Company as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. In that capacity, he was one of the leaders of Nigeria first consortium of indigenous energy companies that included ND Western, Aradel Energy, First Exploration and Production, Waltersmith, and Petrolin. It was from there that President Tinubu appointed Ojulari as the GCEO of NNPC Limited on 2nd of April 2025.

With this background, no one should be surprised at what Ojulari is currently doing at NNPC Limited. His experience at the highest level of the oil and gas industry became a veritable tool to help re-engineer the new NNPC Limited. And he started by expanding the production capacity of the oil and gas giant. His first focus was the NNPC Exploration and Production Limited, (NEPL). The company is an NNPC 100% owned exploration and production company which is fully focused on direct exploration and production. Before Ojulari took office, the company was battling to do around 250,000 barrels per day. The former Shell boss was not comfortable with this. He and his team got down to work and production of NEPL increased to an unprecedented 330,000 barrels per day. Surprisingly, this was beyond the 300,000 barrels per which was the 2025 target.

Perhaps, nothing explains possible expectations of Ojulari’s associates about the excitement over his appointment than the perception that the NNPC of old was a cash cow where everyone just goes to take his or her own share. Perhaps, it might not be wrong if one says the NNPC used to be a microcosm of a larger Nigerian where no one sees any reason to give to but to take from. The incorporation of NNPC Limited in 2021 might have changed the name of the oil and gas giant, but it probably did not change the perception of some Nigerians that the place was a source of undeserved financial gains.

When Ojulari came in, he took that bold step to change that mindset. He has driven massive and drastic changes in the way things are done at NNPC Limited. He instituted changes in the emplacement of commercial contracts; hence contractual obligations are no longer used as a means just to settle some political IOUs. Rather, every decision is seen and taken as business decision in the best interest of NNPC Limited, to drive the commercial progress of the company and Nigeria at large.

It must, however, be noted that this bold move at sanitising the oil and gas giant and halting the financial hemorrhage was not expected to go down well with some vested interests close to the corridors of power. It was, therefore, not surprising that words started making the rounds within the power circles that Ojulari might soon be out of job. This was not only shocking but also an indication that Nigeria might not actually be ready for the needed reforms to ensure that the nation’s oil and gas governance conforms to global best practices. It is gratifying that those baying for Ojulari’s professional blood seem to have mellowed down but vigilance is still needed. The truth remains that public office needs the likes of Ojulari, if we must make progress as a nation.

Anyone conversant with history of labour unionism in the oil and gas sector in Nigeria would not but applaud the industrial harmony that is presently the case between the Management of the NNPC Limited and relevant labour Unions. From the day he came in, it was revealed that Ojulari was very keen at establishing healthy working relationship between his management team and labour unions. Insiders said that he has not only achieved this, but the labour unions are now working very harmoniously with him, supporting his drive for improved business processes at NNPC Limited.

A clear demonstration of Ojulari’s Midas touch at NNPC Limited was the recent announcement that the company posted a total revenue of N45.1 trillion and profit after tax of, PAT, of N5.4 trillion. It was feat Ojulari said was “a defining milestone in the history of our new company.”
Ojulari added that the “these results are more than numbers; they are a validation of our strategic direction and the dedication of every member of the NNPC team. This performance strengthens our foundation to fuel Nigeria’s economic growth and energy security, and it reaffirms our commitment to delivering sustained value for all our stakeholders.”

There impressive results did not come by happenstance. They were products of meticulous deployment of both material and human resources. These include a massive boost in hydrocarbon output as the target was actually two million barrels of crude oil per day by 2027 and three million barrels per day by 2030. In the area of gas production, the company aims to increase natural gas production to 10 bcf/d by 2027 and 12 bcf/d by 2030.

And talking about gas production and maximising outfit, NNPC Limited is working on key national gas assets like the Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano, AKK, pipeline, the Escravos–Lagos Pipeline System, ELPS, and the Obiafu–Obrikom–Oben, OB3, pipeline expansion. Beyond this, there is a planned $60 billion in new investments by 2030 across the entire oil and gas value chain.

Even with these impressive shifts in the outlook of NNPC Limited, the management of NNPC Limited still needs to do more in shaping and changing public perception of the company. The Nigerian public is yet to know and see the new NNPC Limited. The toga of an outfit that was generally perceived by the public as a cesspool of financial indiscipline and operational indiscretions must be completely shrugged off. And the opaque nature of its operations does not help matters too.

The major consolation is that Ojulari is on the right track to change this. The only prayer is: let the system allow him to see this through. And let friends and associates see his job as a national call to service and not an invitation to a lunch table.

Adebayo, an oil and gas industry analyst, wrote in from Lagos