Elozino Olaniyan breaks barriers as Midwestern Oil’s first female MD/CEO, steering a new leadership era.
Effective December 1, 2025, Midwestern Oil and Gas, an indigenous Nigerian exploration and production company known for its traditional leadership, will be led by a woman for the first time in its twenty-six-year history. Engr. Elozino Olaniyan has been appointed as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, a significant move that signals a break from the company’s long-standing past.
The business strategist will bring over 30 years of industry experience to the company, covering upstream operations, corporate strategy, environmental management, safety leadership, and stakeholder engagement. She holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Benin, and her career began in technically demanding roles that progressively advanced into senior management positions.
While at Shell Nigeria, Elozino Olaniyan quickly advanced in her career, gaining deep exposure to the operational backbone of the industry. As Environment General Manager, she oversaw environmental compliance and stewardship across complex assets. She also managed industry-wide safety systems and risk frameworks as Safety Manager. Later, as Manager Commercial, she went on to handle business planning and commercial strategy, which helped her develop a balanced understanding of field operations, regulatory expectations, and executive-level decision-making.
This broad foundation became even more relevant when she moved to Renaissance Africa Energy Company Ltd as General Manager of Safety and Environment. There, she led a series of reforms aimed at strengthening safety performance, improving operational efficiency, and raising the company’s environmental standards. Her work helped establish Renaissance Africa as a reference point for responsible upstream operations, and it influenced best-practice adoption across the Nigerian energy sector. Her approach consistently emphasised regulatory compliance, operational discipline, environmental responsibility, and transparent reporting.
A timely appointment to leadership
Olaniyan’s appointment comes at a time when Midwestern Oil and Gas is undergoing significant internal reform. A public statement revealed that the company recently refreshed its executive leadership team and reconstituted its board with independent directors to reinforce stronger oversight, improved governance frameworks, and clearer accountability structures.
The Board Chairman, Emeka Okwuosa, describes Olaniyan’s arrival as a defining moment that introduces a technically grounded and strategically disciplined leadership style to guide the company through this new phase of growth.
Beyond the corporate transition, the energy expert’s appointment represents a major step for gender inclusion in the Nigeria’s oil and gas space. Seeing an indigenous E&P company appoint its first female CEO after 26 years underscores the slow but visible progress toward inclusive leadership in a sector long dominated by men.
Her rise is a model for young engineers – especially women – who rarely see themselves represented at the highest levels of technical and corporate leadership.
As she steps into this new role, with a career defined by reform, rigour, and a commitment to sustainable practices, Elozino Olaniyan is prepared to guide Midwestern Oil and Gas into its next era of responsible growth.
