The former Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Mohammed Barkindo, was on Thursday in Vienna, the Austrian capital appointed the Secretary-General of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries .
Mr. Barkindo served as the NNPC director from 2009 to 2010 and as the acting secretary-general of OPEC in 2006. He was nominated for the position by the Nigerian government.
The former NNPC leader will replace Libyan oil minister Abdalla El-Badri, who is currently serving as the acting secretary-general. He was elected to the position in December 2015 after OPEC members failed to meet the required consensus to appoint a new leader. Mr. El-Badri’s provisional term will expire in July, after which Mr. Barkindo will assume office and serve as secretary-general for the next three years.
Barkindo, who was recently nominated by the Federal Government for the position, led the NNPC from 2009 to 2010 and served as acting secretary-general of OPEC in 2006, as well as representing Nigeria at the group.
OPEC has been looking for a replacement for Libya’s Abdalla El-Badri, who was elected acting secretary-general in December until the end of July after serving full terms.
The 13-member oil cartel has tried unsuccessfully for more than three years to find a replacement for the current secretary-general, who was due to stand down in 2012 after serving two terms in the role. At OPEC’s last meeting in December, El-Badri’s term was extended until July.
