The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) is addressing gaps in financial reporting and corporate governance as it prepares for a potential initial public offering (IPO), with decisions on restructuring parts of its business expected to form a key part of the listing process.
NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Bashir Ojulari, disclosed this in an interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, saying the company had completed an initial assessment of its IPO readiness and was implementing measures to meet capital market requirements.
Ojulari said the assessment identified areas requiring improvement before the company could proceed with a public listing, adding that NNPCL was working to become ready for the process as soon as possible.
“We’ve done the baseline assessment,” he said, explaining that the company was implementing measures “to be IPO ready as soon as possible.”
He noted that not every part of NNPCL’s business would necessarily be suitable for listing in its current form. The company may have to streamline its portfolio, consolidate some operations or exit certain assets before proceeding.
“There are some things that cannot even be IPOed,” Ojulari said. “You have to decide whether you do a portfolio rationalization on them, consolidate them, or, you know, exit those items when that time comes.”
The proposed listing presents a complex exercise because NNPCL operates across several segments of the petroleum industry, including crude oil exploration and production, pipelines, refining, trading and retail distribution. Decisions on which businesses to retain, restructure or potentially list will therefore be part of its preparation.
NNPCL is also reviewing its investments in joint ventures with domestic and international oil companies, including a possible sale of up to 30 per cent of its stakes in selected ventures.
Ojulari indicated that a decision could emerge in early 2027 as the company considers proposals from existing partners and prospective foreign investors. The review is aimed at attracting funding and technical expertise while determining the future structure of the joint ventures.
The IPO preparations are unfolding alongside a decline in NNPCL’s earnings in the first half of 2026.
Financial data reviewed by Nairametrics showed that the company recorded a profit after tax of ₦2.28tn for the six months ended June 2026, down 35.4 per cent from ₦3.53tn in the corresponding period of 2025. The decline amounted to approximately ₦1.25tn.
NNPCL reported a profit of ₦385bn in January before earnings fell to ₦136bn in February, its lowest monthly result during the six-month period.
Profit recovered to ₦276bn in March and increased to ₦481bn in April. Earnings then moderated to ₦462bn in May before rising to ₦535bn in June, the strongest monthly performance recorded in the first half of the year.
Despite the monthly recovery towards the end of the period, cumulative first-half earnings remained below the previous year's level.
NNPCL’s proposed IPO has been under consideration for several years following its transition to a commercially driven entity under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
In March 2025, the company’s Chief Finance and Investor Relations Officer, Olugbenga Oluwaniyi, said NNPCL was in the final stages of preparing for a public listing and had begun selecting advisers. The company also commenced an IPO-readiness exercise covering investor relations, investment banking and advisory services.
In August 2026, President Bola Tinubu indicated that his administration’s economic reforms would eventually include listing NNPCL shares on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX), potentially allowing Nigerians and other investors to acquire stakes in the company.
However, NNPCL clarified in September 2026 that no date had been fixed for the proposed offering, stressing that the final decision would rest with its shareholders.
The latest update comes as Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE extends its ongoing $1.6bn IPO by two weeks. Following approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the subscription deadline was moved from October 13 to October 27.
While both companies are considering public capital market offerings, NNPCL’s preparations involve a broader portfolio of upstream, midstream and downstream operations, requiring decisions on governance, financial reporting and the structure of its businesses before a listing can proceed.
The timing of NNPCL’s IPO remains uncertain, with the company yet to announce a definitive date. Its next steps will depend on the progress of the corrective measures, portfolio reviews and decisions by its shareholders.