Reactions as Nigeria’s Port Harcourt refinery shutdown after $1.5 billion rehabilitation
The Port Harcourt Refining Company has stopped working again, less than a month after it appeared to have resumed production.
The refinery was inaugurated on November 26, 2024, by the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Mele Kyari, after a $1.5 billion rehabilitation.
The rehabilitation project aimed to increase the refinery’s production capacity to 60,000 barrels per day. However, stakeholders have raised concerns about the effectiveness of the rehabilitation project, citing that the refinery was not fully operational and that the inauguration was a publicity stunt.
Journalists who visited the refinery late 2024 observed that the lifting of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) had stopped.
The 18-arm loading bay of the new Port Harcourt refinery was empty, with about 18 trucks littering the stretch of the busy road leading to the refinery itself, and nine trucks spotted inside the parking yard.
READ ALSO: NNPC says it’s yet to commence bulk sales of petrol from Port Harcourt Refinery
The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria initially attributed the shutdown to the calibration of meters at the loading bay and de-watering of old stock. However, others have alleged that the refinery was never fully operational and that the inauguration was a façade.
Critics have accused the government of mismanaging the project and wasting public funds. They argue that the $1.5 billion spent on rehabilitation could have been better utilized elsewhere. The shutdown of the refinery has also raised concerns about the country’s fuel supply, as Nigeria relies heavily on imported fuel.
Some petroleum product marketers have decried the state of refineries in the country, alleging that since Kyari inaugurated the plant, no production had taken place, pointing out that everything was just a show.
He stated that the refinery’s shutdown is a result of a lack of intention to make it work and deceive Nigerians.
