The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) has welcomed public scrutiny of its operations while defending the performance of its Group Chief Executive Officer, Engr. Bayo Ojulari, with the company citing increases in crude oil and gas production under his leadership.
NNPC said the clarification followed recent media reports attributed to the Oil and Gas Professionals Forum (OGPF), which questioned the performance of the company’s leadership in connection with the recently concluded oil licensing round conducted by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
In a statement issued on Saturday, the company’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Andy Odeh, said NNPC remained committed to transparency and accountability and would continue to engage openly on its performance and operations.
Odeh, however, said it was necessary to clarify the company’s role in the licensing round, stressing that NNPC had no regulatory or allocative authority over the process.
According to him, the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 places the conduct of oil licensing rounds and allocation of oil blocks within the statutory mandate of the NUPRC.
“NNPC Limited, since its incorporation, has operated strictly as a commercial entity and holds no regulatory or allocative authority,” he said.
On production, NNPC said publicly available data showed a sustained improvement in crude oil output since April 2025.
The company said average crude oil production stood at 1.60 million barrels per day (mbpd), inclusive of condensate, in April 2025, before rising through the second half of the year and stabilising at 1.67mbpd by April 2026.
It said the increase of about 80,000 barrels per day represented a six per cent growth in output.
“These figures are documented in NNPC Limited’s Monthly Performance Report, which is available to the public,” Odeh said.
The company also reported growth in gas production during the period, saying output rose from an average of 7,354 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) in April 2025 to 7,729mmscfd by April 2026.
NNPC said the 375mmscfd increase represented five per cent growth and was an indication of expanding gas output in support of domestic energy security and Nigeria’s export commitments.
The company said the production figures were also contained in its publicly available Monthly Performance Report.
NNPC said it remained open to scrutiny but warned that it would take necessary steps to protect its reputation and that of its leadership against what it described as false or unsubstantiated claims.
“We encourage industry commentators, analysts, and professional associations to verify information through the appropriate regulatory and corporate channels before publication,” Odeh said.
He added that greater reliance on verified information would ensure that public commentary remained factual, balanced and constructive to informed debate on Nigeria’s energy sector.
