As General Counsel for GE Africa, the Nigerian will be responsible for leading General Electric’s legal and compliance department in Africa, and providing guidance to teams across GE’s geographies and businesses on the continent.
Prior to her appointment, Ozim Ifeoma Obasi had served as legal director for GE Gas Power Business in Africa since January 2020. Based in Accra, Ghana, she was responsible for all legal and compliance matters for GE Gas Power in sub-Saharan Africa. She is also the General Counsel for GE Africa, responsible for risk management and GE brand for the various businesses in sub-Saharan Africa.
In Africa, GE operates in the oil and gas, power, transportation, healthcare, renewable energy and aviation sectors. GE began operating in sub-Saharan Africa more than 100 years ago. The company has more than 2,500 employees there, has revenues of approximately $3.7 billion (2017), and operates in 25 countries. GE’s main operations in Sub-Saharan Africa are in Nigeria, South Africa, Angola, Ghana, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Kenya, where its GE Sub-Saharan Africa headquarters is located.
Experienced Lawyer
Ozim Ifeoma Obasi is an attorney with over nineteen years of experience in the energy industry, commercial transactions, corporate practice, regulatory compliance, legal advisory services, project finance, localization, joint ventures and business development.
A 1998 graduate of the University of Nigeria, Ozim Ifeoma Obasi was admitted to the Nigerian Bar in October 2000, and admitted as a Solicitor of England and Wales in 2011. She also obtained an LLM in Energy Law and Policy and an MBA in International Business Transactions (2007/2008) from the Centre for Energy, Mineral Law and Policy, University of Dundee, Scotland.
Ozim Ifeoma Obasi started her career in 2000 with Serenity Legal Union & Partners Port Harcourt, and also worked with Aelex Legal Practitioners Lagos from January 2009 to October 2010. Between 2003 and 2006, she also worked as legal counsel/corporate secretary for Oildata Wireline Services Port Harcourt, a subsidiary of Oildata Logging Services Houston. In addition to legal counsel, her primary area of interest was business development, marginal field opportunities and joint ventures.
Career at GE
Ozim Ifeoma Obasi joined GE Oil & Gas in November 2010 as a regional advisor in sub-Saharan Africa. In this role, she supported business operations, growth/market entry opportunities, business development, joint ventures, localization initiatives, regulatory compliance, company secretarial, labor and employment issues, and general legal counsel.
With the merger of GE Oil & Gas with Baker Hughes to form BHGE in 2017, Ozim Ifeoma Obasi covered East Africa and Equatorial Guinea as Geomarket Counsel with overall responsibility for BHGE’s legal and compliance in the region, including supporting growth and business development across the full flow value chain for BHGE.
Ozim Ifeoma Obasi is Vice President of the Board of Directors of Bethesda child support agency, a Nigerian non-profit organization established in 2001 by Nkoyo Rapu. Bethesda’s main objective is to mobilize the efforts of the Nigerian government, the private sector and other development agencies to ensure educational opportunities for children in poor communities.
