Tinubu Seeks Senate Approval for New NUPRC, NMDPRA Chiefs as Ahmed, Komolafe Resign
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has forwarded the names of two nominees to the Senate for confirmation as chief executives of Nigeria’s petroleum regulatory agencies, following the resignation of their incumbent heads.
In a State House press release issued on Wednesday, the President announced that Engineer Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), and Gbenga Komolafe, Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), have stepped down from their positions. Both officials were appointed in 2021 by former President Muhammadu Buhari under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) framework.
To fill the vacancies, President Tinubu nominated Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as Chief Executive Officer of the NUPRC and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as Chief Executive Officer of the NMDPRA, requesting the Senate’s expedited confirmation.
Eyesan is an industry veteran with nearly 33 years of experience at the NNPC and its subsidiaries. A graduate of Economics from the University of Benin, she retired as Executive Vice President, Upstream (2023–2024) and previously served as Group General Manager, Corporate Planning and Strategy between 2019 and 2023.
Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed, born in 1957 in Gombe State, holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Ahmadu Bello University, obtained in 1981. He was also announced on Wednesday as an independent non-executive director at Seplat Energy.
His extensive career includes serving as Managing Director of Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company and the Nigerian Gas Company, as well as chairman of several boards, including the West African Gas Pipeline Company, Nigeria LNG subsidiaries, and NNPC Retail.
Mohammed also served as Group Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, Gas & Power Directorate, where he provided strategic leadership on major gas initiatives and policy frameworks such as the Gas Masterplan, Gas Network Code, and key inputs into the Petroleum Industry Act. He played pivotal roles in landmark projects including the Escravos–Lagos Pipeline Expansion, the Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline, and Nigeria LNG Train projects.
The nominations are now before the Senate for legislative consideration.
