President Bola Tinubu has nominated Saidu Mohammed as the new chief executive of Nigeria’s Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), seeking to stabilise an agency rocked by corruption allegations that triggered the resignation of his predecessor.

The appointment, announced Wednesday, comes as Africa’s largest oil producer grapples with allegations from billionaire industrialist Aliko Dangote, who accused former NMDPRA chief Farouk Ahmed of undermining domestic refining through collusion with international traders.

Mohammed, 68, brings nearly four decades of technical expertise and leadership from Nigeria’s state oil company to a role that oversees the country’s downstream petroleum operations. His nomination requires Senate confirmation.

Born in Gombe in 1957, Mohammed earned his chemical engineering degree from Ahmadu Bello University in 1981 before embarking on what would become a distinguished 37-year career at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.

His trajectory through NNPC encompassed critical operational and strategic positions that positioned him at the heart of Nigeria’s energy infrastructure development.

Mohammed’s career highlights include managing director roles at both the Nigerian Gas Company and the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company. In 2016, he ascended to Group Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of NNPC’s Gas & Power Directorate, a position he held until his retirement in 2019.

Since leaving NNPC, Mohammed has served as chairman and chief executive of GasXperts Nigeria Limited and holds an independent director position at Asharami Energy Limited. He was recently announced as an independent non-executive director at Seplat Energy.

Mohammed’s track record

Mohammed’s fingerprints are visible across Nigeria’s gas infrastructure landscape. He played a role in developing the Nigerian Gas Master Plan and establishing the West African Gas Pipeline Authority, which coordinates the pipeline delivering Nigerian gas to Benin, Togo, and Ghana.

His implementation credentials include overseeing the expansion of the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System and the ambitious Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano gas pipeline project designed to unlock gas supplies for power generation and industrial development across northern Nigeria.

On the international stage, Mohammed represented Nigeria on the executive board of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum, the gas equivalent of OPEC. He chaired the board of directors for West African Gas Pipeline Company and N-Gas Bermuda, while serving on the board of Nigeria LNG Limited, the country’s flagship liquefied natural gas venture.

Beyond operations, Mohammed shaped the regulatory framework governing Nigeria’s gas sector. He contributed to formulating the Associated Gas Framework Agreement, developing the Gas Network Code, and providing technical input to provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act, the 2021 legislation that restructured Nigeria’s oil and gas sector and created the NMDPRA itself.

His international presence includes delivering lectures at major industry forums, including the Offshore Technology Conference, SERA Week, and GASTECH, cementing his reputation as a thought leader in gas commercialization and infrastructure development.

Mohammed holds registration with the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria and fellowship status in both the Nigerian Society of Engineers and the Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers, where he served as president.

He was elected president of the Nigeria Gas Association and maintains memberships in the Nigerian Institute of Management and the Institute of Directors.

Dangote’s influence

The nominations follow resignations by Ahmed and Gbenga Komolafe, who led the NMDPRA and Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, respectively since their 2021 appointments under former President Muhammadu Buhari.

Dangote’s allegations claimed Ahmed engaged in economic sabotage by continuing to issue import licenses for petroleum products despite the operation of Dangote’s 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery, Africa’s largest. The industrialist’s claims included assertions about secondary school tuition fees worth millions of dollars.

Mohammed’s appointment signals Tinubu’s effort to restore credibility to an agency critical for regulating Nigeria’s domestic fuel market at a time when the country seeks to end decades of fuel importation despite being Africa’s largest crude producer.

His gas infrastructure background may prove valuable as Nigeria pursues its Gas Master Plan and seeks to monetise vast associated gas resources currently flared.

The Senate’s response to Tinubu’s confirmation request will determine when Mohammed can formally assume control of an agency whose decisions affect everything from petrol pricing to refinery licensing in Africa’s most populous nation. (BusinessDay)

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