Minister, Board members laud NNPC Management for ₦287bn net profit

*Timipre Sylva, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, congratulates the Group Managing Director, Management and Staff of the Corporation on achieving the feat, describing it as ‘a proud moment’ for him in a season of achievements in the oil and gas sector of the economy

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

Sequel to the presidential applause for the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on its recent posting of ₦287billion Profit After Tax (PAT) in the 2020 financial year, H.E. Chief Timipre Sylva, Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and Alternate Chairman of the NNPC Board of Directors as well other members of the Board, has congratulated Malam Mele Kyari, Group Managing Director (GMD), Management and Staff of the Corporation on achieving the feat.

Chief Sylva, who stated this virtually in his opening remarks during a press conference held on the development Thursday, August 26, 2021, at the NNPC Towers, Abuja, FCT, said Corporation’s emergence from loss into profitability, coming shortly after the signing into law of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), was a proud moment for him.

Malam Mele Kyari, Group Managing Director of NNPC

The Minister noted this is a season of achievements for the country’s oil and gas sector.

ConsumerConnect had reported for the very first time since its incorporation in 1977, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, who doubles as the Minister for Petroleum Resources, Thursday announced the N287billion net profit by the NNPC.

Mr. Garba Deen Muhammad, Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the Corporation, in a statement Friday, August 27, disclosed that members of the NNPC Board, including Chief Pius Akinyelure, Malam Mohammed Lawal, Dr. Tajudeen Umar and Mrs. Lami Onayi Ahmed, who were present at the briefing Thursday night, also echoed the Minister’s comment, and applauded the Management and staff of the Corporation for the achievement.

Earlier in his remarks, Malam Kyari had given an insight into the measures adopted by his management to achieve the feat.

The GMD attributed the turnaround of the Corporation from a loss of ₦803billion in 2018 to profit of ₦287billion in 2020 to the aggressive implementation of cost-cutting measures, improved efficiency through business automation, emphasis on commercially-focused investments and non-interference in the management of the Corporation from any quarters.

The statement also noted Kyari said that the Corporation saved a lot of cost through contract renegotiation by up to 30 percent on the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic, introduction of technology that drastically cut travel cost through reduction in in-person meetings, and the general automation of processes that enhanced efficiency across the group’s businesses.

According to the NNPC GMD, Management’s focus on the prioritisation of investment and staff welfare also helped in boosting the Corporation’s overall productivity and bottomline in the last financial year.