In a move by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s (NNPC) management to ensure that the corporation delivers on its core mandates, many top management officers of the corporation are to be moved to new positions while some will be promoted in a major shake-up that will take effect this week.
It can be exclusively reported that the shake-up would affect mainly Chief Operating Officers, Group General Managers and Managing Directors of subsidiaries.
It was gathered that among other new postings, the current Chief Operating Officer, Upstream, Roland Ewubare, would move to Ventures and Business Development while the COO Downstream, Adeyemi Adetunji, would move to Upstream.
Mr. Ewubare, in the new position, is to get an additional responsibility of business development, besides managing the group’s ventures. With the sharp drop in oil prices and other challenges, Ewubare would have the onerous task of laying the groundwork for the corporation to take up new business opportunities as the National Assembly prepares to pass the Petroleum Industry Bill later this year. The new position would also see Ewubare traversing both downstream, midstream and upstream sectors to develop new ventures.
Prior to his promotion as COO, Upstream, Ewubare was the Group General Manager, NAPIMS between August 2017 and July 2019. He was also the Managing Director, Integrated Data Services Limited, an NNPC subsidiary, from August 2015 to August 2017.
A reliable source revealed that the current COO, Ventures, Lawrencia Ndupu, would become COO, Downstream.
Also, the Managing Director, Petroleum Products Marketing Company, Bala Wunti, will move to the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS) as Group General Manager while the current GGM, NAPIMS, Musa Lawal, will become MD of PPMC.
Wunti, a seasoned professional, who has been holding key positions in the corporation, is being moved to NAPIMS, it was learnt, because of his impeccable track record.
Wunti was the Group General Manager, Corporate Planning and Strategy, before being posted to the PPMC. Mr. Wunti led the Economic Management Team (EMT) that formed the Technical Committee for the review and amendment of the 1993 Deep Offshore Act (currently before NASS), to improve Government Take from Product Sharing Contracts.
A major feature of the shake-up is that more women will get opportunities to head top and sensitive positions.
SOURCE: The Whistler