Today 19 March, 2020, Dr. Maikanti Kacalla Baru, former Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) will receive Leadership Newspaper CEO of the Year 2019 Award. His recognition by this newspaper was premised on his dogged pursue of hydrocarbon reserves in the Country, leading to discovery of oil and gas in commercial quantity in the Gongola Basin; his superintending a Downstream Sector devoid of products shortages at critical period during his tenure; his consistent adherence to probity through transparent bidding processes; Driving down the cost of production of crude oil in Nigeria; and Administering a seamless transition to a successor, Mallam Kolo Kyari and many more.

Baru was GMD of NNPC for barely seven months in 2019 (he disengaged at the statutory age of 60) yet, his achievements in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry speak volumes. It is on the basis of his extra ordinary performance during his tenure that recommended him for the coveted Leadership Newspaper CEO of the Year 2019 Award.

Who is Dr. Maikanti Kacalla Baru?

Maikanti Kacalla Baru is an indigene of Misau, in Misau Local Government Area of Bauchi State. He obtained his West African School Certificate in 1978 with Distinction Aggregate 06 from the Federal Government College, Jos and later bagged a First Class Honours in Mechanical Engineering from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria in 1982. He also attended the University of Sussex, United Kingdom where he graduated with a Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Aided Engineering in 1987.

Between 1988 and 1991, he held various positions at the Jos Steel Rolling Company Ltd. including Head, Corporate Planning and Electrical Departments while also serving in several Committees in the Company.

He started his NNPC career as the Engineering Manager, National Engineering and Technical Company Limited (NETCO) from May to November 1991. He became the Manager, Operations of Procurement Management Services (PROMAS) from 1991 to 1993 where he saved the Corporation over $70 million in six months of operation.

Thereafter, he served in the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS) as the Manager Gas Department for four years and in 1997, he was appointed General Manager, Gas Development Division. During his stewardship of the Joint Venture Gas Projects, the Division saved over $575 million through project costs optimisation.

In July 1999, he was appointed as the Executive Director, Operations of the Nigerian Gas Company, Warri. He was responsible for the smooth operation of all the facilities in the Nigerian Gas Company including uninterrupted gas supply to customers such as NEPA.  Dr. Baru was NNPC’s Chief Technical Negotiator on the West African Gas Pipeline project from July 1999 to April, 2004.

He was appointed as the Managing Director of Hyson (Nigeria) Limited in April 2004. Under his stewardship, Hyson was introduced into the domestic LPG business and grew rapidly raking in profits of N24m in 2004, N164m in 2005 and N400m in 2006.

From December, 2006 to September 2007, he was the Group General Manager, Greenfield Refinery Projects Division, in September 2007, appointed Group General Manager of the National Petroleum Investments Management Services (NAPIMS), in September, 2009 appointed GGM, NNPC Field Services Limited and later GGM LNG Investment Management Services (LIMS).

In 2015 he was appointed Group Executive Director, Exploration and Production.  In March 2016, he was appointed as Technical Adviser (Gas Matters) to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and on July 4th, 2016, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR appointed him as the 18th Group Managing Director of NNPC.   

Dr. Baru, a one-time chairman of the NNPC Anti-Corruption Committee was the Speaker at the 40th Convocation Lecture of his alma mater, the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria on 24th November, 2017; Speaker at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, combined 23rd, 24th and 25th Convocations in 2018 and Convocation Lecture of Federal University of Petroleum Resources, FUPRE, Effurun, Delta State in 2019.

As the GMD NNPC, Dr. Baru has won several awards which include the 2016 Honourary Award of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) to commemorate his conferment as Honorary Member of NAPE; the 2016 Achievement Award of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Nigeria Council.

In 2017, Dr. Baru bagged the prestigious Forbes’ African Oil and Gas Industry Man of the Year Award, the African Free Press Magazine’s Distinguished African Oil and Gas Icon of the Year Award, PETAN Distinguished Leadership Award and the Zik Prize in Leadership Award for Professional Leadership. 

Dr. Baru is a Fellow, Nigerian Academy of Engineering (FAEng); Fellow, Nigerian Society of Engineers (FNSE); Fellow, Nigerian Institution of Mechanical Engineers (FNIMechE); Fellow, Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers (FNSChE)among others.

He is also the proud recipient of the following chieftaincy titles:

Ozo Igwe Ndu of Ibagwa Nike, Enugu East Local Government Area of Enugu State.

Akajiaku of Obinwanne, Umuaka Kingdom, Njaba Local Government Area of Imo State and Aka Unene of Obolo Community, Akwa Ibom State.

SOURCE: Leadership