President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has formally requested the Senate’s approval for the appointment of two new chief executives to head Nigeria’s petroleum sector regulators, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The request followed the resignation of Engineer Farouk Ahmed, former Chief Executive of the NMDPRA, and Mr Gbenga Komolafe, former Chief Executive of the NUPRC.
Both officials were appointed in 2021 by ex-President Muhammadu Buhari to lead the regulatory agencies established under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
In separate letters to the Senate, President Tinubu sought expedited confirmation of Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as Chief Executive Officer of the NUPRC and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as Chief Executive Officer of the NMDPRA.
According to the President, the nominees are seasoned professionals with decades of experience in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
Eyesan is a graduate of Economics from the University of Benin and spent nearly 33 years with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its subsidiaries.
She retired as Executive Vice President, Upstream, between 2023 and 2024, having earlier served as Group General Manager, Corporate Planning and Strategy at NNPC from 2019 to 2023.
Engineer Mohammed, born in 1957 in Gombe State, obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in 1981.
He was also announced on Wednesday as an independent non-executive director at Seplat Energy.
His career spans several strategic roles, including Managing Director of the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company and the Nigerian Gas Company. He has chaired the boards of the West African Gas Pipeline Company, Nigeria LNG subsidiaries, and NNPC Retail.
He also served as Group Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, Gas and Power Directorate, where he provided leadership for key gas projects and policy frameworks, including the Gas Masterplan, the Gas Network Code, and contributions to the Petroleum Industry Act.
Engineer Mohammed played prominent roles in the delivery of major national projects such as the Escravos, Lagos Pipeline Expansion, the Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline, and Nigeria LNG Train projects.
President Tinubu urged the Senate to consider and confirm the nominees promptly to ensure continuity and effective regulation of Nigeria’s petroleum industry.
