By Adewale Sanyaolu
Mr. Mele Kolo Kyari, Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) cannot substitute excellence for anything. For him two things are permissible in his life- hard- work and excellence.
Born on January 8, 1965 Kyari hails from Borno State.
He officially assumed the leadership of NNPC July 8, 2019. From day one, Kyari did not leave anybody in doubt about his mission to transform the corporation.
Right now , NNPC , without doubt, has rediscovered itself , moving on a trajectory of achieving global excellence and becoming an integrated energy Corporation. From partner- ing with EITI, promoting deregulation of the downstream sector, introducing cost discipline by setting a $10 per barrel unit operating cost, rehabilitation of ailing refineries, pipelines and depots, deepening domestic gas utilisation to public disclosure of NNPC accounts, the first in the Corporation’s 43 year history, Kyari has championed Transparency and Accountability.
The NNPC boss actually came to the office well prepared . A 1987 Bachelor of Science(B. Sc) degree holder in Geology and Earth Science from the University of Maiduguri, he started his professional career as a Field Geologist with the Geological Survey of Nigeria before joining the services of the NNPC in 1991 as a Processing Geophysicist. In his early years in the industry, he was engaged in the development and delivery of key deepwater exploration projects leading to the discovery of major deepwater fields in the Niger Delta. He also played key role in the development of robust basis of determining entitlements of all parties in the Production Sharing and Joint Venture arrangements and especially secured disputed Federation entitlements from the PSCs.
In 2015, as Group General Manager, Crude Oil Marketing Division, NNPC, he transformed the management and sales of the various Nigeria’s crude oil grades and Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs) through transparency, process automation and business conduct with world- class standards. This led to the optimization of revenues accruable to the Federation and the timely recovery of sales proceeds.
He ensured Bulk Supply of Petroleum Products to the nation and remitting the total cost of Federation Crude Oil to the Federation account through the Direct-Sales, Direct Purchase (DSDP) initiative.
Kyari also contributed immensely to the resolution of various disputes with International Oil Companies (IOCs) on the performance of the Production Sharing Contracts leading to potential exit from national contingent li- abilities. As the Oil and Gas Champion for the Open Government Partnership for Nigeria, he has advocated for transparent national dealings in petroleum trade by the NNPC.
In 2016, he was appointed as Nigeria’s National Representative on the Economic Commission Board of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) where he provides leadership and participates in engagements relating to Crude Oil and Gas production and associated market issues.