President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has nominated new chief executives for Nigeria’s top petroleum regulatory bodies following the resignation of their heads, a move aimed at ensuring continuity in the implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
The President has formally asked the Senate to confirm Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The nominations follow the exit of Engineer Farouk Ahmed and Gbenga Komolafe, who were appointed in 2021 by former President Muhammadu Buhari to lead the two agencies established under the PIA.
In a letter to the Senate, President Tinubu urged lawmakers to expedite the confirmation process, underscoring the strategic importance of the petroleum sector to the nation’s economy.
Eyesan brings nearly 33 years of experience from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and its subsidiaries. A graduate of Economics from the University of Benin, she retired in 2024 as Executive Vice President, Upstream, having earlier served as Group General Manager, Corporate Planning and Strategy between 2019 and 2023.
Engineer Mohammed, a 1981 Chemical Engineering graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, was born in 1957 in Gombe State. A veteran of the oil and gas industry, he has held key leadership positions, including Managing Director of the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company and the Nigerian Gas Company. He also chaired the boards of West African Gas Pipeline Company, Nigeria LNG subsidiaries, and NNPC Retail.
Until his nomination, Mohammed served as Group Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, Gas and Power Directorate, where he played a leading role in shaping Nigeria’s gas policy framework, including the Gas Masterplan, Gas Network Code, and contributions to the Petroleum Industry Act. He also provided strategic leadership for landmark projects such as the Escravos–Lagos Pipeline Expansion and the Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline.
The presidency said the nominees’ depth of experience positions them to steer the regulators at a critical time for Nigeria’s energy sector.
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