Austin Avuru is Chairman AA Holdings and Co-Founder and Pioneer CEO of Platform Petroleum Limited and Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc.

A State Scholar at Orogun Grammar School, he graduated with a B.Sc. in geology from University of Nigeria, Nsukka where he was top of his class and voted President of the graduating class of 1980.

Mr. Avuru began his career in 1980 as a well site geologist with NNPC. He distinguished himself early in his career and emerged Best Overall Student at the NNPC comprehensive training class of 1983 at the Petroleum Training Institute, Warri. He was best in geology, geophysics and petroleum engineering.

He further acquired expertise as a production seismologist and reservoir engineer. By 1987, he was one of NNPC’s pioneer 3-D Seismic interpreters and participant in one of Chevron’s largest 3-D interpretation project in 1987/88.

In 1991, Mr. Avuru was the recipient of the NNPC GMD’s Merit Award for what was described in his citation, as “Exceptional Performance”. He was one of seven chosen to undergo a Post Graduate Diploma at the University of Ibadan in order to convert them to Petroleum Engineers. He once again emerged top of his class.

Mr. Avuru joined Allied Energy Resources in 1992 as Exploration Manager and rose to the position of Deputy COO. Ten years later, he assembled a team of industry professionals to set up Platform Petroleum Limited where he was Pioneer Managing Director/CEO.

In 2010 Platform Petroleum and Shebah Exploration and Production Limited jointly formed Seplat Petroleum with Mr. Avuru as Pioneer CEO. He built the Company into a formidable indigenous oil and gas independent with dual listing on the main board of the London Stock Exchange and Nigerian Stock Exchange, a first for any Nigerian Company.

Mercurial, methodical and meticulous, Mr. Avuru, is a former President of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE); author of the seminal volume, Politics, Economics & the Nigerian Petroleum Industry; and the new management handbook “My Entrepreneurship Journey”. Fellow of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (FNAPE) and 2015 winner of Ernst & Young West Africa Entrepreneur of the Year. He received an Honourary Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka in 2018.

Mr. Avuru served as Technical Coordinator for the review of the Memorandum of Understanding of the Nigerian Oil & Gas Industry 1991; was Member of the Ministerial Committee on the restructuring of the Department of Petroleum Resources in 1998 and was Consultant to the Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources between 2000 and 2003. He also chaired the Technical Subcommittee that drafted the policy blueprint which subsequently formed the basis of the Nigerian Content Act of 2010.

A philanthropist and alumnus of Harvard Business School OPM 41, Mr. Avuru retired from Seplat on July 31, 2020. He now runs his family investment company, AA Holdings Limited and his philanthropy, AA Foundation.

He is married with children.