•Bayo Ojulari
The Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Bayo Ojulari, today, raised the alarm over threats to his life and those of the company’s management staff.
Ojulari said his only “offence” was introducing reforms in the oil and gas sector in line with the mandate given to him by President Bola Tinubu to revive the nation’s moribund refineries, reports Vanguard.
Speaking when he received a delegation of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), led by its President, Comrade Festus Osifo, at the company’s headquarters in Abuja, Ojulari alleged that some powerful interests opposed to the reforms were plotting to remove him.
He disclosed that the company was considering adopting an NLNG-style partnership model with “a professional refinery company” to ensure the sustainability and profitability of Nigeria’s refineries.
Ojulari explained that after technical and commercial reviews of the refineries, it was clear that running them without professional partnerships would continue to drain resources.
“A lot of money has been spent on these refineries, but translating that into profitability has been difficult because of years of neglect. When I resumed, we found that we were losing between $300 million and $500 million monthly. We had to stop operations and look for a sustainable solution,” he said.
He stressed that the reforms had unsettled vested interests, triggering coordinated attacks against him and his management team, including petitions to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
“We are under attack. It is real. There are formidable plans to take me out of this seat. But we are determined to stay focused and deliver on the mandate given to us by President Tinubu,” Ojulari said.
The GCEO, however, assured staff that their jobs would not be threatened by the reforms, noting that new opportunities and training would emerge as the refineries are modernised.
On the fuel supply situation, he said there had been no major shortages because of strategic partnerships, including NNPCL’s equity stake in the Dangote Refinery. He projected that within the next two to three years, at least one or two of the nation’s refineries would be fully operational to meet growing demand in sub-Saharan Africa.
Earlier, PENGASSAN President Osifo commended Ojulari’s leadership, noting improvements in production and pipeline stability since he assumed office. He pledged the union’s support to ensure stability in the oil and gas sector.
