Port Harcourt, Nigeria – Operations on the Port Harcourt Refining Firm have come to a halt lower than a month after it appeared to renew manufacturing. The ability, which underwent a $1.5 billion rehabilitation, is not lifting Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), generally referred to as petrol.
PUNCH reported {that a} go to to the refinery on Thursday, December 19, 2024, revealed an empty 18-arm loading bay, with tanker drivers idle and ready for actions to renew. In keeping with sources, the final lifting of PMS occurred on Friday, December 13.
The refinery’s re-commissioning on November 26, 2024, by Nigerian Nationwide Petroleum Firm Restricted (NNPC) CEO Mele Kyari was met with celebration, signalling the refinery’s long-anticipated return to manufacturing. Nevertheless, critics allege that the petrol lifted throughout the inauguration occasion was previous inventory from storage tanks moderately than freshly refined merchandise.
Stakeholder Issues
Petroleum product marketer, Mr Dappa Jubobaraye, alleged that the resumption was staged to mislead Nigerians. “It was meant to deceive Nigerians that the refinery is working,” he claimed, stating that the ability’s infrastructure, together with loading arms and meters, remains to be incomplete.
“Of the 18 loading arms, solely three are purposeful, and so they have leakages,” he added. Jubobaraye additional said that because the inauguration, impartial entrepreneurs have but to load merchandise from the depot because of unresolved pricing and operational points.
Refinery’s Decline Put up-Inauguration
Refinery officers initially attributed the suspension of actions to the calibration of meters and the de-watering of previous inventory to make means for brand spanking new manufacturing. Whereas a short resumption noticed a handful of vans loaded each day, operations ceased fully final week.
A truck driver ready on the depot expressed scepticism about claims that loading would resume on Monday. “They stated they’d load on Monday, however I’m unsure,” he stated.
Implications for Petroleum Provide
The halt in operations has raised considerations over the reliability of Nigeria’s refineries and the broader implications for gas availability within the nation. Critics argue that the refinery’s points mirror deeper systemic issues, together with mismanagement and underinvestment in important infrastructure.
In the meantime, the NNPC is but to launch a press release relating to the report as efforts to achieve spokesperson Femi Soneye for remark by PUNCH have been unsuccessful as calls and messages went unanswered on the time of reporting.
The scenario on the Port Harcourt Refinery underscores the challenges dealing with Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector, at the same time as the federal government continues to push for self-sufficiency in gas manufacturing.
