Yakubu out of NNPC

The news of the removal of Andrew Yakubu from the position as group managing director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) emerged last weekend in a shake-up that saw four other top officials sacked.

Appointed in June 2012, Yakubu was the 15th NNPC boss. He joined NNPC 34 years ago.

Prior to his appointment as the GMD, he had risen through the ranks to become the managing director of Warri Refining and Petrochemicals Company (WRPC) and group executive director in charge of exploration and production.

Yakubu started his career as pioneer plant/chief operator and refinery superintendent, Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company, (KRPC) in 1980. He was posted to WRPC in 1989 as superintendent officer in charge of the fuel plant.

At various times he was executive director, operations, NETCO; executive director, operations, Nigerian Gas Company; general manager, engineering technical services, engineering and technology division, ETD; manager, JV Oil Facilities, National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS); manager, East Area Oil Development Project, Mobil Producing Nigeria JV; manager, Yoho Oil Development Project, Mobil Producing Nigeria JV as well as manager, Bonny Terminal Rehabilitation Project. 

He was also manager, project coordination department, gas division of NAPIMS, a division of the NNPC; manager, Escravos Gas Projects Phase 1-3/EGTL; manager, Obite Gas Project and Manager, Belema Gas Project.

Yakubu through the years attended a handful of management development programmes both in Nigeria and abroad, including a certificate in Strategy and Organisation from the Graduate School of Business Studies, Stanford University; International Petroleum Development Course by IHRD Boston, USA; Institute for Management Development (IMD), Lusan, Switzerland; World Economic Congress, Washington DC; International Gas Technology Conference, Vienna, among others. A Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers as well as Fellow Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers, he was the 2007 winner of the NNPC Group Managing Director’s Award for outstanding performance.

He is also a Fellow of the Nigerian Association of Technologist in Engineering and an Associate Fellow, Chemical Society of Nigeria.

From 1975 to 1979, he was at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, where he bagged a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemical Engineering.