President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has forwarded the names of two new nominees to the Senate for confirmation as chief executives of Nigeria’s key petroleum regulatory agencies, following the resignation of their current heads.
The request, conveyed in a letter to the upper legislative chamber, seeks the Senate’s approval of Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The nominations come on the heels of the resignation of Engineer Farouk Ahmed, former CEO of the NMDPRA, and Gbenga Komolafe, former CEO of the NUPRC. Both officials were appointed in 2021 by former President Muhammadu Buhari to head the two agencies established under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
President Tinubu has urged the Senate to give expedited consideration to the nominations in order to ensure continuity and stability within the regulatory framework of the oil and gas sector.
Profile of the Nominees
Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan is a seasoned professional with extensive experience in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry. A graduate of Economics from the University of Benin, she spent nearly 33 years with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its subsidiaries. She retired as Executive Vice President, Upstream, serving between 2023 and 2024, and previously held the position of Group General Manager, Corporate Planning and Strategy, from 2019 to 2023.
Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed, born in 1957 in Gombe State, obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in 1981. He was recently announced as an independent non-executive director at Seplat Energy.
His career spans several strategic roles, including Managing Director of Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company and the Nigerian Gas Company. He has also chaired the boards of the West African Gas Pipeline Company, Nigeria LNG subsidiaries, and NNPC Retail.
Engineer Mohammed previously served as Group Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, Gas and Power Directorate, where he provided leadership on major gas infrastructure projects and policy frameworks such as the Gas Masterplan, the Gas Network Code, and key inputs into the Petroleum Industry Act.
He played significant roles in the execution of major national projects, including the Escravos–Lagos Pipeline Expansion, the Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline, and Nigeria LNG Train developments.
The nominations were announced in a statement signed by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, dated December 17, 2025. The Senate is expected to act on the requests in the coming days.
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