President Bola Tinubu’s nominees for the leadership of Nigeria’s petroleum regulatory agencies on Thursday pledged sweeping reforms aimed at plugging value leakages, restoring discipline across the sector and unlocking fresh investments under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
The nominee for the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, and her counterpart at the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Saidu Mohammed, made the commitments during their screening by the Senate at Room 117 shortly after plenary.
Both nominees told lawmakers that digitisation, strict contract enforcement, credible data management and accelerated gas development would be central pillars of their leadership, as Nigeria seeks to reposition its oil and gas industry amid declining revenues and growing global energy transition pressures.
Eyesan, who is slated to head the upstream regulator, said weak data integration and heavy reliance on manual processes were costing the country enormous value in an industry that is rapidly becoming digital worldwide.
“We are still largely manual, while the world is moving at jet speed. Without digitisation and real-time data, you cannot truly understand what you are regulating, and you will continue to lose money,” she said.
She stressed that effective upstream regulation depends on accurate production and reserves data, asset integrity monitoring and transparent systems capable of providing real-time oversight across the value chain.
On his part, Mohammed told senators that the midstream and downstream segments require tighter regulatory discipline and stronger enforcement of contracts to eliminate inefficiencies and revenue losses. He said restoring confidence in the regulatory environment would be critical to attracting fresh private investment, particularly in gas infrastructure and refining.
Both nominees emphasised that gas development would remain a strategic priority, describing it as a transition fuel that can drive industrialisation, support power generation and stabilise government revenues.
The Senate is expected to conclude the screening process and consider the confirmation of the nominees in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act.
