By Ayokunle Victor

How time flies! Flurry activities in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. Today, 2 April 2026 makes it exactly one year that a consummate oil and gas expert, Engr. Bashir Bayo Ojulari was appointed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the 2nd GCEO of the ‘new’ Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, (NNPC Limited). Recall that a new NNPC (i.e. NNPC Limited) was born in 2022 following the passage of PIA 2021 into law. Mallam Mele Kyari became the first GCEO of the new NNPC Limited until April 2, 2025, when he handed over to Engr Bashir Bayo Ojulari. Counting from the beginning of the old NNPC, Engr. Ojulari is the 20th Chief Executive to man the affairs of NNPC since the national oil company was created by Decree 33 of 1977.

Without doubt, the choice of Engr. Bayo Ojulari as the GCEO of NNPC Limited, at this point in time, is essentially one of the best choices made by President Tinubu. Of course, that goes a very long way to buttress the point that has been made by many analysts about the fact that President Tinubu, from his days as the Governor of Lagos State, knows how to identify the best hands, who can help him steer the ship in every area of his administration.

So, Ojulari owes his appointment to no other person, or to any political apron strings, but to the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Engr Ojulari had not only paid his dues in the oil and gas industry, but he has also proven his mettle in the new NNPC Limited in the last 365 days. Ojulari is one Nigerian whose immense impact in the oil and gas industry is not only monumental, but also transformative. Upon assumption of office, he clearly understood the task ahead of him – to transform the national oil company; a behemoth that is not only strategically important to the socio-economic wellbeing of the Nigerian nation, but also important to the global oil and gas industry. So, there was no indication that Ojulari believed his new job would be a stroll in the park. He knew he was stepping into an environment where he was not only to be at his best professionally, but he also needed to understand the political dynamics and variables that surround his new office.

So, no one should be surprised at what Ojulari is currently doing at NNPC Limited. He started by driving expansion of the production capacity of NNPC Limited. His first focus was the NNPC Exploration and Production Limited, (NEPL). NEPL is an E & P company owned 100% by NNPC Limited. The company is an upstream company whose main objective is direct exploration and production of oil and gas resources. Over the years, the company has been struggling to produce between 200,000 to 250,000 barrels of oil per day. When Ojulari took office, he was not comfortable with this level of performance. So, he went to work. It was not long, NEPL production increased to an unprecedented 330,000 barrels per day as of August 2025. By the end of 2025, NEPL is celebrating 355,000 barrels per day of production.

NNPC Limited owns and manages Joint Venture business relationships with International Oil Companies (IOCs) such as Chevron, TotalEnergies, and host of other Nigerian oil companies such as Seplat, Heir Holding, etc. NNPC Limited, by the provisions of the PIA, is also designated and serves as the concessionaire for all the Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs). The PSC sets out the contractual and commercial framework for exploration and development of oil, especially, in the Deepwater frontiers of the Nigerian oil industry.

As a concessionaire, NNPC role in the framework of the PSCs involves managing the PSC business relationship by partnering with the oil companies in the development of oil fields and representing the interest of the Nigerian Federation in all the PSCs. Ojulari, within the last one year, with the support of President Tinubu, has been able to woo Shell, to come forward to invest in the development of Bonga Southwest-Aparo field.

Since Egina FID was taken in 2014, there’s no major FID in the deepwater space until presidential approval for Bonga Southwest-Aparo FID was given by President Tinubu a couple of weeks ago. This is a major deepwater development, which promises to bring additional 200,000 barrels of oil per day and 140 MMScf of gas per day, to the daily production capacity of Nigeria. The project alone is poised create over 5000 direct and indirect jobs in Nigeria. Before now, Ojulari has taken steps that fast track the development of Bonga North and Preowei projects. These are currently ongoing deepwater development projects which are championed by Ojulari, and which promise another 200,000 bpd. The above-mentioned projects and many more ongoing projects scattered across Nigeria’s upstream landscape gives an indication that Nigeria’s daily production can surpass 2 million barrels per day by year 2027. Indeed, the impact of Ojulari in the upstream space is quite enormous. The last time this kind of mega deepwater development project was seen in Nigeria was the Egina development whose FID was taken in 2014. So, it is not surprising that they are springing up now that Ojulari is on the saddle. Two factor account for this new development. First, the PIA and its terms. The second factor is the Ojulari factor.

His personal pedigree and his vast connection within the global oil and gas industry is drawing investors’ attention to Nigeria’s deepwater space.

It is good to highlight Ojulari’s soft skills which have driven drastic transformational changes in NNPC Limited. First, he took some people-oriented measures which have positively changed the mindset and the mood of theworkforce. With the support of his astute senior management team, he has driven massive changes in the way things are done at NNPC Limited. His leadership has been driven with passion to see a better NNPC woven in excellence, integrity, and patriotism. He has successfully installed a performance-based management system, making it clear to all that there is a paradigm shift in the management of NNPC Limited. Today, there are positive changes in the method of emplacing 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 over 200 million Nigerians and the NNPC Limited. The goal of every engagement is to drive the commercial progress of the company for the benefit of the Nigeria people at large.

Perhaps, anyone conversant with intrigues of labour movement the Nigerian oil and gas industry would not but applaud the industrial harmony that had existed in NNPC and in fact in oil industry since Ojulari took over the helms of affairs. He has keenly established a healthy working relationship between his management team and the labour unions. Inside sources confirmed that he has not only achieved this healthy working relationship, but he has also been able to get the leadership of the labour unions and indeed the entire workforce to work very harmoniously with him, with everyone supporting his drive for improved business processes and profitability at NNPC Limited.

When one looks at the financial results of NNPC Limited, a demonstration of Ojulari’s Midas touch is clearly seen. The year 2024 audited financial results show that NNPC Limited posted a profit after tax of, PAT, of 5.4 trillion naira. The recent announcement of year 2025 unaudited result is clearly showing that NNPC will post about 5.76 trillion Naira PAT. In the words of Ojulari himself, “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.”

These impressive results did not come by happenstance. It is not hard to believe that these were products of meticulous deployment of both material and human resources. We also gathered that NNPC Limited is already concluding work 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.

Even with these impressive shifts in the outlook of NNPC Limited, the management of NNPC Limited led by Ojulari needs to do more in the area of constructively informing the Nigerian public on the achievements of NNPC Limited. There is need for NNPC Limited to upgrade its approach to media and public awareness system. To be honest, the current approach has not done enough to change the perception about the NNPC of old: a cesspool of sleaze with an opaque management system. Changing this narrative will go a long way to reshape public perception of the company. A huge population of the Nigerian public is yet to know and see the new NNPC Limited. And the new NNPC-L is there to see and behold. The public is LOOKING. It must be helped to SEE. And this requires a meticulous approach to perception management.

As Ojulari and his team mark one year in office, we see hope for the Nigerian oil and gas industry and hope for the Nigerian people. This hope stems from the fact that Ojulari is on the right track driving major transformational changes in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. The only prayer we offer for Ojulari and team is this: may the system allow them to see this through.

• Ayokunle, an oil and gas expert, wrote in from Abuja.