After several failed deadlines by the handlers of Port Harcourt Refineries, the Nigerian Senate in Far away Houston, Texas, United States of America, said the two refineries in Port Harcourt and Warri currently under rehabilitation would become operational this year.
Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum (Downstream), Ifeanyi Ubah, gave the assurance at the ongoing 2024 Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston, Texas.
The senator who was not specific on the timeline for their operations, however, said plans are already being implemented to achieve the target, adding that the Kaduna Refinery would also be operational before the end of next year.
He said: “My mandate is to ensure that the refineries in Nigeria are up and functional. With my involvement, two refineries will be up and running this year.
“Also, before the end of next year, the Kaduna refinery will come on stream. Also, the production of jet oil and lubricant will be produced by mid-next year.
“I can assure Nigerians that I will tirelessly pursue and ensure that these refineries are up and running before the end of the year. We have set up a technical team to visit the refineries every two weeks to meet the set target.”
He explained that the completion of the plants and the addition of supply from the 650,000 barrels per day Dangote Refinery would enable the nation to meet its domestic fuel demand.
The Senator also urged the Federal Government and other stakeholders to work toward establishing modular refineries to expand further the nation’s domestic capacity to refine crude oil.
Ubah’s assurance comes after the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) quoting the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, revealed in October that the Kaduna refinery would be back on stream by the end of 2024.
The 110,000 bpd-capacity Kaduna Refinery is one of Nigeria’s four dysfunctional refineries that have produced no fuel for years, leaving the country to rely on imported petroleum products.
In August 2021, the Federal Executive Council approved the contract award for the rehabilitation of Warri and Kaduna Refineries at the combined total sum of $1.5bn.
Mele Kyari, Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), had said in March 2024 that the port Harcourt Refinery will start operation in April 2024, after it failed failed to meet the December and after Chrismas 2023 deadlines
According to the NNPC chief, the mechanical works have been completed on the facility which has received over 450,000 barrels of crude following delivery from active lines.
He also said repair works at the Kaduna and Warri refineries are near completion.
According to him, the Kaduna refinery is expected to commence operations in December.
Despite being Africa’s number one oil producer, Nigeria has relied on imports of petroleum products due to a lack of domestic refining capacity..
The Port Harcourt refinery is Nigeria’s oldest, built in 1965, nine years after oil was found under the marshy soil and creeks of the delta, where the Niger River runs off into the Gulf of Guinea.
Refineries in nearby Warri, and Kaduna in the North-Central region, were built in the years that followed, while a new plant was added to the same site in Port Harcourt in 1989.