By Peter Omopo
Abuja, April 30, 2025 — In a sweeping restructuring move, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has dismissed the managing directors of its three major refineries—Port Harcourt Refining Company, Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, and Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company.
The shake-up, which also affected several senior executives, includes the exit of Bala Wunti, former Chief of the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), a key NNPCL subsidiary. Sources within the company confirmed that officials with less than a year to retirement were also asked to step down.
While the NNPCL spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye, did not officially comment, multiple high-level insiders confirmed the leadership overhaul, which comes weeks after President Bola Tinubu dismissed former NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer Mele Kyari and the entire company board.
The changes are believed to be part of a broader strategy to reposition Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, which has struggled to meet production targets in recent years. Presidency sources attributed the shake-up to poor performance, citing a need for a fresh direction and stronger delivery on key benchmarks.
“This is a performance-based decision,” one senior official said anonymously. “The old leadership was not meeting expectations, and the President wants new energy and a team of industry experts—not politicians—to drive results.”
The new NNPCL management has reportedly been tasked with achieving ambitious production targets, including ramping up daily crude oil output to 2 million barrels by 2027 and 3 million barrels by 2030. Additionally, Nigeria aims to generate 10 billion cubic meters of gas annually by the end of the decade.
“This is the first time the entire leadership team is made up of core industry professionals,” the source added. “They’ve been given clear performance metrics and timelines, and the expectations are high.”
The overhaul marks one of the most significant corporate leadership changes since NNPCL’s transition into a commercial entity, signaling a renewed focus on performance, efficiency, and energy output under the Tinubu administration.
