The Port Harcourt Refinery, with a combined capacity of 210,000 barrels per day, is set to come on board as it begins operations today, Businessday has learnt.
“Yes, the refinery is set, we will visit the the refinery site today to kickstart it’s operation, Amaka Okafor, special assistant to Heineken Lokpobiri, minister of state for petroleum (oil) told Businessday.
The $1.5 billion rehabilitation project was launched by the Buhari administration in 2019, to restore the aging refinery to its nameplate capacity of 210,000 barrels per day (bpd).
The project seen as a critical step towards boosting Nigeria’s domestic refining capacity and reducing its dependence on imported petroleum products.
Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPC Ltd had earlier announced that the Port Harcourt refinery will commence operation in December 2023.
Speaking during the budget defence session on December 9, Kyari, told lawmakers that by the end of December this year, the Port Harcourt refinery would commence operations.
Additionally, in early 2024, the Warri refinery is slated to begin, and by the end of the same year, the Kaduna refinery is expected to come online, according to Kyari.
Kyari affirmed this commitment, inviting accountability, asserting that these initiatives, including refinery rehabilitation, small-scale refinery efforts, and the upcoming Dangote refinery, aim to transform Nigeria into a net exporter of petroleum products by 2024.
“I can confirm to you that by the end of December this year, we will start the Port Harcourt refinery; early in the first quarter of 2024, we will start the Warri refinery, and by the end of 2024, Kaduna refinery will come into operation,” he said.