Economy

BREAKING: Tinubu Sacks NNPCL Boss Kyari, Names Ojulari as Replacement

By Web News 85

In a sweeping reconstitution of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited board, President Bola Tinubu has removed the chairman, Pius Akinyelure and the Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari.

Consequently, the President appointed Bashir Ojulari as the new CEO, effective from April 2, 2025.

Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, revealed the development in a statement he signed in the early hours of Wednesday titled, ‘President Tinubu reconstitutes NNPC limited board, appoints new Chairman, Group CEO.

’“President Tinubu removed all other board members appointed with Akinyelure and Kyari in November 2023.

“The new 11-man board has Engineer Bashir Bayo Ojulari as the Group CEO and Ahmadu Musa Kida as non-executive chairman,” the statement reads.

Adedapo Segun, who replaced Umaru Ajiya as the chief financial officer last November, has been appointed to the new board.

Six board members, non-executive directors, represent the country’s geopolitical zones.

They are Bello Rabiu representing the North West, Yusuf Usman representing the 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.

“Mrs Lydia Shehu Jafiya, permanent secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, will represent the ministry on the new board, while Aminu Ahmed will represent the Ministry of Petroleum Resources,” Onanuga stated.

All the appointments are effective today, April 2.

President Tinubu, invoking the powers granted under Section 59, subsection 2 of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, emphasised that the board’s restructuring is crucial for enhancing operational efficiency, restoring investor confidence, boosting local content, driving economic growth, and advancing gas commercialisation and diversification.

He also handed out an immediate action plan to the new board “to conduct a strategic portfolio review of NNPC-operated and Joint Venture Assets to ensure alignment with value maximisation objectives.”

Since 2023, the Tinubu administration has implemented oil sector reforms.

Punch/Olaolu Fawole

Economy

FG will continue to provide interventions in oil & gas industry -Tinubu

By Web News 397

By Abdullah Bello (Abuja)

President Bola Tinubu says his administration will continue to provide the needed interventions in the oil and gas industry in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA.

President Tinubu stated this in Abuja while receiving a delegation from the Chevron Corporation, led by President of Chevron International Exploration and Production, Mr. Clay Neff. 

The President said Nigeria would strengthen its long-standing partnership with the multinational company in line with the evolving dynamics in the oil and gas industry. 

He appreciated Chevron’s commitment to build on its investments in shallow and deep water operations in Nigeria, welcoming the company’s ongoing 1.4-billion dollar drilling project with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL. 

President Tinubu commended Chevron for its dedication to reducing its carbon footprint in the country.

”You must see the PIA as a legacy law. We assure you of quick interventions and turnaround on any issue you may have in your operations in our country. 

”Nigeria is proud of the 60-year partnership with Chevron, and we believe this partnership will be strengthened to add mutually beneficial value for the benefit of your shareholders as well as the living standards and economic opportunities of our population,” President Tinubu said.  

Mr Neff had pledged that the company would continue to operate in full adherence to the highest standards, even as it meets its investment commitments in Nigeria.

He highlighted the company’s contributions to domestic gas supply, citing the delivery of 25 per cent gas through a joint venture with NNPC Limited. 

 Mr Neff said Chevron was scaling up its investments in the country with its recent efforts in a new phase of development to include the conversion, under the Petroleum Industry Act, of all the NNPCL/Chevron Nigeria Limited Joint Venture, JV, Oil Mining Leases, OMLs, and Agbami OML 127 to Petroleum Mining Leases and Petroleum Prospecting Licences PPLs, entry into OPL 215 block to boost deep-water development opportunities, signing of the 20-year renewal of three deepwater leases, the commencement of seismic data acquisition in several deepwater leases; commencement of life extension work on the Agbami project and in partnership with NNPCL, securing of $1.4 billion financing to fund the NNPCL/CNL JV infill drilling programme between 2022 to 2026, which includes the drilling of 37 wells in the shallow offshore and onshore Escravos area and associated facilities”.

Mr. Neff further informed President Tinubu that Chevron’s average annual tax and royalty remittances over the past three years had reached 3.4 billion dollars. 

”The bold steps you have taken since you assumed office are quite impressive. We are encouraged by our partnership of over 60 years, and we look forward, God willing, to continue that partnership for many decades to come. 

”We are also looking at other opportunities as well while operating with the best environmental practices. We will continue to grow our traditional oil and gas business because we know the countries where we operate need those products, and the world needs those products,” he said. 

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Energy

Cooking Gas Price Hike Imminient

By Web News 472

Gas retailers have warned that the price of 12.5kg cooking gas may hit N18,000 by December if the Federal Government does not restrict the activities of the terminal owners.

The President, Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers, Olatunbosun Oladapo, told newsmen that the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas also known as cooking gas has “gone astronomically high at terminals as a result of a sudden increment from between N9-N10m per 20 metric tons to N14m per 20 metric tons.

“There is a ridiculous hike in gas prices going on right now, and I am afraid that if the Federal Government does not step in to checkmate the activities of these terminal owners, price could reach as high as N18m per metric tons by December. This means that a 12.5kg could go as high as N18,000.”

According to him, terminal owners were “hiding under the guise of high foreign exchange to increase price to further increase the suffering of the masses.”

Olatunbosun said there was no justification for the increment, as the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited still supplied the market.

He said, “NNPCL currently takes 59 per cent of the gas produced by NLNG, although NLNG has also increased its price from N6m to N8m. Now, because NLNG has increased price, NNPCL and terminal owners have increased price to N14m.

“The increase in price that would take effect is not the fault of retailers. It is the fault of NLNG and terminal owners. Even NNPCL is hiding under the guise that they are now privatised to increase prices. As of last week, 1kg was N800 at the terminal, now it is N1,200, and could reach N1,500 by December if care is not taken.”

He added, “Now, the ordinary man would not be able to buy gas. How many minimum wage earners can afford gas now? Everyone is turning to firewood and charcoal. The surprising thing was that they visited President Tinubu last week, and promised to work together with his administration to make life better. Now they have come back and started doing something else. Where are all the palliatives and busses they promised to donate? We have not seen anything.”

Although gas terminal owners did not have a visible association, spokespersons for NavGas, Friday Agwu, and Nipco Plc’s Askay Kumar, blamed the hike on forex and the international market.

“No one is selling at N1,200/kg. I have not heard such high price yet,” Kumar said. He however declined to respond when asked how much the landing cost was.

Friday blamed the price on forex and raise in price of crude oil at the international market.

“Flat price increase and forex challenges, and LPG responding to crude price increase at the international market,” he said

Punch/Oluwayemisi Owonikoko

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Energy

No Intention to Hike Fuel Price Says NNPCL

By Web News 375

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has eventually spoken up as regards the widespread concern of a possible hike in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol.

In a post by the company, posted around 11:48pm on Monday on its official X (formerly Twitter) handle, the national oil firm and major importer of petrol into Nigeria, said it had no intention to increase the pump price of petrol.

“Dear esteemed customers, we at NNPCL Retail value your patronage, and we do not have the intention to increase our PMS pump prices as widely speculated.

“Please buy the best quality products at the most affordable prices at our NNPCL Retail stations nationwide,” the company stated.

The NNPCL Retail is the downstream subsidiary of NNPCL that retails refined petroleum products for the group.

Recall that oil marketers had on Sunday indicated that the cost of petrol would rise to between N680/litre and N720/litre in the coming weeks should the dollar continue to trade from N910 to N950 at the parallel market.

They also hinted that dealers seeking to import PMS were being forced to put the plans on hold due to the scarcity of foreign exchange to import the commodity.

Punch / Titilayo Kupoliyi

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Energy

NNPCL Releases New Petroleum Pump Price

By Web News 1478

The Nigerian National Petroleum Ccompany Limited (NNPCL) has jerked up pump prices of petrol (PMS) by over 200 per cent bringing the price of fuel to between N488 and N557 per litre.
A new pricing template purportedly sent to marketers by the NNPCL management to oil marketers late yesterday, a copy of which was obtained by newsmen, directed that the new price adjustment come into effect from today.

From the new price template, Lagos State has the least price of N488 per litre while Maiduguri and Damaturu have the highest pump prices of N577 per litre.

The new NNPCL price template is applicable only to NNPCL retail outlets.

See the template below:

Thenationonline/Oluwayemisi Owonikoko