Kyari Now New NNPC GMD, As President Buhari Releifs Baru

Maikanti Baru    (c) The Punch

Mr. Mele Kolo Kyari, has been appointed the new Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, by President Buhari, bringing to an end the tenure of Maikanti Baru, as the oil firm’s GMD.

Ndu Ughamadu, NNPC’s Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, disclosed this in Abuja on Thursday morning, that the President also appointed alongside Kyari, seven new Chief Operating Officers.

Until his new appointment, Kyari, a geologist, was Group General Manager, Crude Oil Marketing Division of NNPC and also doubled, since May 13, 2018, as Nigeria’s National Representative to the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, The Punch reports.

President Buhari also directed that the new GMD and the newly appointed Chief Operating Officers work with the current occupiers of the various offices till July 7, 2019 towards a smooth transition on July 8, 2019, when their appointments would take effect.

The corporation, however, stated that the appointment of Mr. Farouk Garba Said (North West), who is replacing a retiring Chief Operating Officer, is effective from June 28, 2019.

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It outlined the newly appointed Chief Operating Officers to include Mr. Roland Onoriode Ewubare (South-South) – Chief Operating Officer, Upstream; Mustapha Yinusa Yakubu (North Central) – Chief Operating Officer Refining and Petrochemicals; Yusuf Usman (North East) – Chief Operating Officer, Gas and Power; and Lawrencia Nwadiabuwa Ndupu (South East), Chief Operating Officer Ventures.

Others include Umar Isa Ajiya (North West) – Chief Financial Officer; Adeyemi Adetunji (South West) – Chief Operating Officer, Downstream; and Farouk Garba Said (North West) – Chief Operating Officer, Corporate Services.

Ughamadu stated that Baru had congratulated the new appointees.

According to the corporation, Kyari is a quintessential crude oil marketer with prerequisite certification and outfield pedigree in petroleum economics and crude oil and gas trading.

It said that in the last 27 years, the new NNPC boss had traversed the entire value chain of the petroleum industry, with exceptional records of performance.

NNPC said under Kyari’s watch, the Crude Oil Marketing Division had recorded noticeable transformation in the management and sales of various Nigeria’s crude oil grades via an infusion of transparency and automation of the processes.

Kyari would be the 19th Group Managing Director of the national oil company.

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The PUNCH in an exclusively report, recently stated that  NNPC had witnessed the removal and replacements of some senior officers from its workforce, and that the government would further remove more senior personnel from the corporation.