The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Bayo Ojulari, has announced plans to resume crude oil exploration activities in Kolmani, located between Gombe and Bauchi states.
Ojulari made the disclosure during a recent interview with BBC Hausa.
According to him, the company is fully prepared to return to the Kolmani oilfields, which had generated high expectations among northern communities when drilling first began.
“NNPCL is ready to resume oil drilling in Kolmani. We have completed critical assessments and are set to move forward,” Ojulari stated.
He emphasized that the project is not only about boosting national oil output but also about stimulating regional economic development.
“This effort will bring progress to the North, attract new industries, and revive existing ones,” he said.
Ojulari added that alongside the Kolmani operations, NNPCL is also advancing work on strategic gas infrastructure projects, particularly the Ajaokuta–Kano (AKK) gas pipeline.
He said the pipeline would help power industries and reduce transportation costs across northern Nigeria.
“I’m a Northerner from Kwara. I grew up in Kaduna and only started learning Yoruba at the age of 15. I studied in Zaria,” he said.
“I want the people of the North to support me in this job so that together, we can bring development to the region and Nigeria as a whole.”
Speaking on the alleged rift between Dangote and NNPCL, he praised Aliko Dangote and assured that NNPCL will work closely with him to ensure Nigerians have access to affordable petrol.
He emphasized that the public will no longer hear of any conflict between NNPCL and the Dangote Group.
The Kolmani oil exploration project was inaugurated in November 2022 by President Buhari as a historic step in diversifying Nigeria’s oil production beyond the Niger Delta.
However, operations were stalled due to technical and logistical challenges.
