Mkpoikana Udoma
Abuja — Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, has called on the incoming Managing Director and Country Chair of ExxonMobil Nigeria, Mr. Jagir Baxi, to sustain and expand investment in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector as he takes the helm of one of the country’s largest International Oil Companies, IOCs.
Speaking during a courtesy visit by the outgoing ExxonMobil boss, Mr. Shane Harris, who formally introduced his successor, Senator Lokpobiri reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to deepening collaboration with global oil players, especially those demonstrating continued leadership in operational excellence and investment.
“ExxonMobil has been a longstanding partner in our energy journey, and it is commendable to see the IOC continuing to demonstrate leadership within the industry,” the Minister stated.
Commending Mr. Harris for what he described as “remarkable stewardship,” Lokpobiri noted that the outgoing CEO’s tenure helped strengthen industry partnerships and improve operational performance in the upstream sector.
“I took the opportunity to commend Mr. Harris for his remarkable stewardship and the contributions made under his leadership to deepen industry collaboration and drive operational excellence,” he said.
Mr. Jagir Baxi, the new Managing Director and Country Chair, currently serves as Executive Director and Production Manager of ExxonMobil’s Nigerian affiliate and is expected to bring decades of technical and leadership experience to the new role.
While congratulating Baxi on his appointment, Lokpobiri charged him to build on his predecessor’s achievements and stay committed to Nigeria’s national priority of ramping up oil production and unlocking new investments.
“I urged him to not only build on his predecessor’s accomplishments but also remain committed to our shared objective of ramping up production, with new investments,” the Minister added.
The leadership transition comes at a pivotal time as Nigeria seeks to reverse declining crude output, attract fresh capital into upstream projects, and stabilise its petroleum sector through regulatory and fiscal reforms under the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA.
