Nigerians Await First Product From Port Harcourt Refinery
Scores of Nigerians have poured encomium on the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd. for the mechanical completion of Port Harcourt Refinery, even as expectations are heightened on the production of refined products from the facility.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, had on December 20, 2023, announced the completion of the rehabilitation of the refinery, disclosing that the facility would resume production of petroleum products after Christmas.
He said, “This is just to announce to Nigerians that in fulfilment of our pledge to bring on stream phase 1 of the PH refinery by the end of 2023 and the subsequent streaming of phase 2 in 2024, we heartily announce the mechanical completion and flare up of the refinery on the 20th of December 2023. This heralds the commencement of production of petroleum products after the Christmas break.”
NNPC in its X handle said, it “has fulfilled its pledge of achieving the mechanical completion of rehabilitation work on Area 5 Plant of the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC).”
However, several reactions to the development were expectations on production of refined products from the refinery.
@TaroAyo76227 said: “stop the propaganda immediately! Port Harcourt Refinery isn’t producing yet. So, it can’t be ready, why not wait for it to start production and distribution before posting….”
@sailormankay said: “lol, fulfills promise when refining never starts yet?”
@bidexthpro said: “This should reduce unemployment to a large extent. If overseen with the right intentions though. Nice one”
In his own view, @TeeSilicon said:“Nothing is fulfilled until refining of fuel commences with reduction in its price. If not, nothing has changed…”
@Bull_Nuel said: “When will operations commence?”
@Naijama: “What is the meaning of “mechanical completion”, and does that translate to refined petroleum products being produced and sold in the Nigerian market?”I’m
Meanwhile NNPC, in a statement posted on it’s X handle reads: “The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd. has fulfilled its pledge of achieving the mechanical completion of rehabilitation work on Area 5 Plant of the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC).
“Rehabilitation work has been ongoing at the Refinery for over two years and the NNPC Ltd. had pledged to complete Phase One of the project (mechanical completion and flare start-up) of Old Port Harcourt Refinery (Area 5) by 31st December 2023.
“Speaking during an inspection tour of the rehabilitation project, which also coincided with the 15th Refineries’ Rehabilitation Steering Committee Meeting, the Group Chief Executive Officer, NNPC Ltd., Mr. Mele Kyari, said as of December 15th, 2023, 84.4% of Area 5 Plant, a key component of the Refinery, and 77.4% of the entire rehabilitation project have been completed.
“In our quest to ensure that this refinery is re-streamed to continue to deliver value to Nigerians, we made a promise that we will reach a mechanical completion of phase one of the rehabilitation project by the end of December and get the other plants running in 2024. Today, we have kept those commitments,” Kyari stated.
The GCEO commended the NNPC Ltd.’s staff and the EPCIC contractors for doing a great job in ensuring that the refinery achieved that significant milestone.
In his remarks, the Chairman of NNPC Ltd Board, Chief Pius Akinyelure described the milestone as “historic”, stressing that the board was proud of the staff and management of the refinery.
“We are just starting. We want to be at the highest level of production so that we will keep the prices of petroleum prices in the country stable in order to give comfort to our people and generate more revenue for our country,” Akinyelure noted.
Also speaking, the Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said the milestone is another landmark of the renewed hope agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR.
He thanked Nigerians for their patience and the trust they have in NNPC Ltd.’s ability to deliver on this huge project.
In his address, the Minister of State for Petroleum (Gas), Rt. Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo, said re-streaming the Refinery will herald a good omen for the nation’s Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) industry, as LPG, also known as cooking gas, is a major bye-product of the Refinery.
Also speaking, the Managing Director of Tecnimont Nig. Ltd., Fabio Del Cioppo, one of the EPC Contractors of the Rehabilitation Project, said his company remains committed to fulfilling the terms of the contract.
The PHRC rehabilitation project, which costs about $1.5bn, is an EPCIC project that covers Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Installation, and Commissioning phases. For Area 5, the Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Installation have all been completed. The mechanical completion signifies the closure of the Construction and Installation phases.
More importantly, the milestone was achieved under an excellent Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) record, which stood at over 9.5 million manhours with zero Loss Time Injury (LTI).
The promise statements below….
Kyari Confirms Port Harcourt refinery will start working in December
The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, has confirmed that the Port Harcourt refinery will start working in December 2023.
Kyari made the confirmation on Thursday during his meeting with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas.
– The Guardian, November 24, 2023
Port Harcourt refinery to commence operations December — Tinubu
President Bola Tinubu, on Wednesday night, assured the leaders of the organised labour that the Port Harcourt refinery will commence operations by December 2023.
_ Punch, August 2, 2023
