By Henry Umahi
Dr. Gbenga Komolafe, an engineer and lawyer, is pioneer chief executive officer of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
Respected as a patriot imbued with sound leadership skills and vision, he has proved his mettle in the upstream petroleum subsector. With solid experience as Group General Manager, Special Duties at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC); Group General Manager, Crude Oil Marketing Division; Executive Director (Commercial), Pipelines and Petroleum Marketing Company (PPMC); General Manager, Operations, Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF), General Manager, Operations, the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), among several others, he has been heavily involved in strategic policy formulation and implementation in the oil and gas industry, championing many reforms.
Komolafe pioneered successful implementation of electronic tracking of petroleum products distribution nationwide, which has resulted in transparent bridging of petroleum products and price equalisation management that saved the government hundreds of billions of naira through institutional process expertise.
He is credited as facilitating optimum revenue for the Nigerian federation as well as performed transparently as acknowledged by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) in one of its reports. He initiated strategic sales and retail plans and coordinated implementation of achievement of set revenue targets from downstream supply and distribution of refined petroleum products for nationwide consumption.
At Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF), Komolafe initiated operations policies for effective petroleum products supply and bridging to the inner parts of the country and price equalisation management nationwide. At PPPRA, he successfully coordinated seamless supply of petroleum products nationwide, with multiplier sectorial effect in the Nigerian economy.
He supervised the unveiling of the implementation template for the Host Communities Development Trust Fund for the commencement of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) provisions under Section 235. In relation to this, he waded into lingering hostilities between Chevron Nigeria Limited and the Ugbororo, Ugbegugun and Denbele communities in Warri South Local Government of Delta State over the naming of the Host Community Trust Fund established for the communities and the composition of its Board of Trustees. Such an intervention has brought some level of peace in the Niger Delta region and boosted investors’ confidence.
Komolafe conducted a transparent bidding process for the operation of the gas flare sites, where 42 firms emerged under the 2022 Nigerian Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme (NGFCP) auction process. For effective implementation of the Nigerian Gas Flare Commercialisation Programme (NGFCP), he established a College of Awardees to chart the path for progress.
Across the petroleum industry, the NUPRC chief executive is widely acclaimed for his professional excellence, diligence and achievements. He is The Sun Public Service Award winner.