EXCLUSIVE: Buhari To Appoint ExxonMobil Vice Chairman, Kachikwu As GMD NNPC

SAN FRANCISCO, August 04, (THEWILL) – Barring any last minute changes, President Muhammadu Buhari will appoint Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, the Executive Vice Chairman of ExxonMobil Africa as the new Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

Sources familiar with the development, who asked not be named because they are not authorized to speak on the matter, told THEWILL that President Buhari met with Dr. Kachikwu on Monday night to finalise talks on his vision for the state owned corporation, which has been enmeshed in allegations of corruption and dubious accounting practices.

“Dr. Kachikwu will be announced anytime from today,” an often reliable source told THEWILL.

The appointment according to insiders is one of the many to come in the President's bid to rid the NNPC of corruption.

Nigeria earns billions of dollars from crude oil, which finances about 85 percent of the federal budget, but an estimated 250, 000 barrels of crude is stolen daily by thieves and sold abroad, the President said during his recent visit to Washington D.C.

Dr. Kachikwu, who has been scheduled to perform a wider role in his new portfolio, is a very well respected technocrat with an impeccable record. He has never held a political appointment, THEWILL gathered.

ExxonMobil insiders say he is a workaholic and widely connected in the international community. He is expected to use his vast experience to restructure the NNPC, pursue creditors and recover missing funds, as well as reposition the NNPC into a world-class corporation amongst several other tasks, the sources said.

THEWILL further gathered that Dr. Kachikwu is one of the highest top ranking black men in ExxonMobil.

Our sources say his candidacy is being promoted by the West and influential patrons who are frustrated by the rot in the petroleum sector.

According to his resume obtained by THEWILL from Zoominfo.com, Kachikwu, from Delta State, is a First Class Graduate of Law from the University of Nigeria Nsukka and the Nigerian Law School, where he was best graduand and multiple awards winner in both Institutions. He also has a Masters and Doctorate Degree in Law from Harvard Law School USA, with distinctions.

A former investment attorney in the United States, the publisher of several magazine titles, has also taught Law at Harvard, Nigerian Law School and several globally acclaimed institutions.

He has three published Law books in Investment Law and Contracts and numerous articles in various Journals. In his capacity as the Vice Chairman and General Counsel of ExxonMobil, he oversees the compliance programs of the company and advices on issues related to adherence with compliance regulations and anti-corruption laws in Africa.

Before he joined Mobil, Kachikwu worked as General Counsel of Texaco Upstream and Downstream in Nigeria.