President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Bashir Bayo Ojulari to replace Mallam Mele Kolo Kyari as the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited.
Before Kyari and now Ojulari, various personalities from different parts of Nigeria have, since inception, steered the affairs of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), now known as the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.
In this article, Tribune Online takes a quick look at a comprehensive list of past Group Managing Directors (GMD) and Group Chief Executive Officers (GCEOs) of the nation’s oil company:
1. Chief R.A. Marinho (July 1977 – April 1980)
Born on December 30, 1934, in Ijebu-Ode, Chief Marinho spent his childhood in the “Brazilian Quarters” of Lagos Island and attended St. Gregory’s College, Obalende, Lagos.
His administration developed key policies in Nigeria’s petroleum industry, increasing production from about 50,000 barrels per day to over 2.5 million barrels at the time of his retirement.
2. Odoliyi Lolomari (April 1980 – August 1981)
Born on December 16, 1933, in Abonnema, Rivers State, Chief Odoliyi Lolomari served as Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Nigeria’s OPEC representative.
With over 50 years of experience in the petroleum industry, he was a founding member of the Nigerian National Oil Company (NNOC) and the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR).
He passed away on September 1, 2021, at the age of 87.
3. Chief Lawrence Amu (October 1980 – November 1985)
Born on December 23, 1933, in Ojokoro, Lagos State, Chief Lawrence Amu obtained a B.Sc. in Engineering from Imperial College of Science & Technology in 1960.
He was appointed Group Managing Director of NNPC in August 1981 while in Canada finalising engineering designs for the 6×230 MW Egbin Power Station.
He passed away at the age of 65 on August 26, 2019.
ALSO READ: Tinubu sacks Kyari as NNPC CEO
4. Dr. Aret Adams (November 1985 – April 1990)
Born on February 27, 1938, in Auchi, Edo State, Dr. Adams had a distinguished career in the oil industry.
He worked with Shell-BP from 1964 to 1974 before joining NNOC, which later became NNPC.
He was appointed Group Managing Director in 1985 and held the position until 1990.
He passed away on August 7, 2002, at the age of 64.
5. Dr. Thomas John (April 1990 – June 1992)
Dr. John served as the fifth Group Managing Director of NNPC, succeeding Dr. Aret Adams.
He was also a non-executive director of South Atlantic Petroleum (SAPETRO), executive chairman of Hydropec Engineering Services Ltd., and a former non-executive director of United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc.
He passed away at the age of 84.
6. Chief Edmund Daukoru (June 1992 – October 1993)
Born on October 13, 1943, in oil-rich Bayelsa State, Chief Edmund Daukoru obtained a Ph.D. in Geology from Imperial College, London.
He was employed by Shell International Petroleum Company in 1970, where he rose from Chief Geologist to General Manager of Exploration in Nigeria.
In 1992, he became Group Managing Director of NNPC.
7. Chief Chamberlain Oyibo (November 1993 – August 1995)
Born in 1941, Chief Chamberlain Oyibo was the 10th GMD of NNPC and served for two years until his retirement in 1995.
8. Alhaji Dalhatu Bayero (August 1995 – May 1999)
Born on November 16, 1922, Dalhatu Bayero hailed from Kano State in the North-West geopolitical zone.
He served as the Group Managing Director of NNPC from 1995 to 1999.
He was a younger brother to the former Emir of Kano, HRH Alhaji Ado Bayero.
9. Engr. Jackson Gaius-Obaseki (May 1999 – November 2003)
A native of Edo State in the South-South geopolitical zone, Gaius-Obaseki studied Geology at the University of Ibadan.
He began his career at NNPC in 1972 and steadily advanced within the organization until his appointment as Group Managing Director in 1999.
10. Engr. Funsho Kupolokun (November 2003 – September 2007)
Born in 1947, he earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Lagos in 1971 as a Shell scholar.
Between 1973 and 1974, he trained with the Algerian National Oil Company, working as a Production Engineer in the Hassa-Messand oil field in the Sahara Desert.
He later joined the Nigerian National Oil Corporation, now known as NNPC, and held various key positions within the corporation.
11. Engr. Abubakar Lawal Yar’Adua (September 2007 – January 2009)
Born in July 1949 in Katsina State, North-West geopolitical zone, Abubakar Yar’Adua served as the Group Managing Director of NNPC under the late former president Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
He joined the corporation as a corps member at the Kaduna Refinery and Petrochemical Company (KRPC) in 1976 and emphasised zero tolerance for corruption during his tenure.
12. Dr. Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo (January 2009 – April 2010)
Born on April 20, 1959, in Yola, Adamawa State, North-East geopolitical zone, Barkindo was the Secretary-General of OPEC in 2006.
He led NNPC as GMD from 2009 to 2010 and played a key role in global oil alliances.
He passed away on July 5, 2022.
13. Alhaji Shehu Ladan (April 2010 – May 2010)
Shehu Ladan was born on 21st September, 1952 and hailed from Kaduna state.
He was a Nigerian lawyer, philanthropist, and oil and gas management strategist at Kaduna State.
He served as the group managing director of NNPC in 2010.
He died on 4th October 2011, at the age of 59.
14. Engr. Austen Oniwon (May 2010 – June 2012)
Born on 1st April, 1951, Austen is an indigene of Okene in Kogi State, North Central Nigeria.
Augustine Oniwon is a Harvard and Oxford-educated engineer who joined NNPC in 1977 and became the head of planning at the Warri Refining and Petrochemicals Company in 1987.
Oniwon then served as technical assistant to the downstream department’s Group Executives Director (1988-91), before serving as head of Kaduna Refining and Petrochemicals Company’s Engineering and Technical Services Department (ETSD) in 1991 to 1992.
Following this, he was appointed head of NNPC’s New Business Development, Corporate Planning and Development Division, until moving to become head of ETSD at Port Harcourt Refinery between 1993 to 1999
15. Engr. Andrew Yakubu (June 2012 – August 2014)
Andrew Laah Yakubu is of the Zangon-Kataf extraction of Kaduna State, Northwestern Nigeria and was born on 10th September, 1955.
He served as the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation from 2012-2014. He was appointed by President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan in 2012.
16. Dr. Joseph Thlama Dawha (August 2014 – August 2015)
Dawha hailed from Biu in Borno State, in the North-East geopolitical zone.
He was appointed as The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation by President Goodluck Jonathan, serving from August 2014 to August 2015.
Prior to his appointment, he was the Group Executive Director of Exploration and Production of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.
17. Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu (August 2015 – July 2016)
Born in 18th December 1956, Ibe Kachikwu hails from Onicha-Ugbo, Delta State in the South-South geopolitical Zone.
Kachikwu served as GMD and Minister of State for Petroleum Resources.
18. Dr. Maikanti Baru (July 2016 – July 2019)
Born in July 1959, Maikanti hails from Jama’are in Bauchi State, in the North-East geopolitical zone, but grew up in Jos, Plateau State.
He was a Nigerian engineer, crude oil marketer, and the 18th Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
He served in this position from July 2016 to July 2019 and had previously served as the Group General Manager (GGM) of National Petroleum Investment Management Services.
He passed away on May 29, 2020, at age 61.
19. Mele Kolo Kyari (July 2019 – April 2025)
Mele Kyari is originally from North Eastern part of Nigeria Maiduguri, Borno State.
Kyari was NNPC’s first GMD under its new status as a limited liability company.
20. Bayo Ojulari (April 2025 – Present)
Bashir Bayo Ojulari is originally from Kwara State (North Central) Nigeria.
Ojulari was a former Shell executive before becoming GMD of NNPC in 2025.
NIGERIAN TRIBUNE