NNPC Deploys Over 1,000 Trainees as Permanent Staff After Year-Long Programme

By Victor Idajil

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPC Ltd, has absorbed more than 1,000 young professionals into its workforce following a year of internship, intensive training and performance evaluation.

Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Ojulari, announced the deployment in a statement on the company’s social media platforms on Wednesday, describing it as a major milestone for the national oil company.

According to Ojulari, the new employees went through a rigorous recruitment process that tested competence, not connections.

“Today marked a huge milestone for us as we officially deployed over 1,000 young professionals into NNPC Ltd after one year of internship, intensive training, and evaluation,” he said.

He said the exercise reflects NNPC’s shift toward merit-based hiring. 
“Different paths, but the same door. And we opened it. That’s what NNPC Limited stands for today: not who you know or where you’re from, but what you can do,” Ojulari stated.

The GCEO explained that while offer letters secured their initial entry, it was their performance during the internship year that earned them permanent roles.

“Their offer letters got them in, but their work this past year kept them here. They proved themselves day after day, under real pressure, and that’s the standard we’re building. Talent. Hard work. Fairness,” he said.

Ojulari urged the new hires to be vocal, innovative and take ownership of their careers. 
“To the over 1,000 newly deployed: you are not just our future. You are our present. Our energy. Our proof. So don’t hesitate to lend your voice, share your opinions, and challenge the status quo. Own your development,” he added.

He also charged them to remember the process and later create similar opportunities for others. 
“But don’t forget the wait. Don’t forget the process. Because one day, when you’re sitting where I am, you’ll remember this moment, and you’ll open that same door for someone else,” he said.

The mass deployment comes as NNPC continues to restructure and build capacity following its transition into a commercially focused energy company under the Petroleum Industry Act.

The recruitment process was first announced in July 2024 under the immediate past GCEO, Mele Kyari, as part of efforts to inject fresh talent into the company’s operations.