Industry experts and operators have expressed concerns following the appointment of Jean-Marc Cordier as the head of the oil trading arm of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
Cordier’s appointment to NNPC Trading Ltd, a subsidiary of NNPCL, was announced in a statement by the company’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Garba-Deen Muhammad
. While some experts found nothing wrong with the appointment, others, including energy expert and CEO of Sage Consulting, Bode Fadipe, expressed concern that a foreigner was appointed to such a strategic position in the country.
Fadipe questioned whether Nigerians were not skilled enough to manage the position and whether the appointment was in line with the ownership of the company by the Nigerian government.
On the other hand, a legal consultant and energy law advisor, Prof. Yemi Oke, argued that the appointment was in compliance with the expatriate quota and the technical requirements of the position.
An anonymous source at NNPCL revealed that most commercially viable subsidiaries of the company would be managed by expatriates going forward, with those in M3 category limited to administrative schedules.
NNPC, in its statement, said Cordier’s appointment was in furtherance of the company’s ongoing repositioning for improved growth, better performance, and service delivery.