Mele Kyari: NNPC not involved in substandard petroleum products importation

Mele Kyari, the group chief executive officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, says the organisation has nothing to do with the alleged importation of substandard products.

Kyari addressed the senate ad-hoc committee investigating alleged economic sabotage in the country’s petroleum industry on Wednesday.

He said the relevant regulatory agencies will, by law, prohibit such substandard products.

The NNPC chief said the company has not breached any of the enabling laws guiding its dealings with its partners and should be exempted from any claims of economic sabotage.

He said the refining business is a straightforward business which any investor should know before entering into the market.

“Refining business is a straightforward business. You must secure (a source for) your feedstock and you must find a market,” he said.

“This is basic and this determines what happens in any refinery anywhere in the world. That is the business of refining. We have done nothing to sabotage any domestic refinery.”

According to the NNPC GCEO, the law is very explicit on domestic crude oil supply obligations and also on providing for local refineries.

Kyari said the law also stated that there must be a willing buyer and a willing seller.

‘NIGERIA HAS ENOUGH INFRASTRUCTURE TO PRODUCE 2 MILLION BPD’

Speaking further, Kyari said there is enough infrastructure to produce two million barrels of crude per day. 

However, he said crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism, and the lack of investment in the upstream are the major factors hindering the sector.

He said as a company owned by Nigerians, the NNPC has developed from a loss-making position to a profit-making entity.

Pledging full cooperation towards the committee in its efforts to unravel the allegations being investigated, Kyari said the NNPC, its entire board, management and staff remain loyal, faithful, and committed to Nigeria.

He said the company would continue to comply with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the Company and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), and other enabling laws and regulations governing the nation’s energy industry.

“We are faithful, loyal and committed to the progress and development of this country,” Kyari said.

On June 23, Devakumar Edwin, vice-president, oil and gas at Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), claimed that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) was granting licences indiscriminately to marketers to “import dirty refined products into the country”.

Consequently, the senate, on July 3, constituted an ad hoc committee to investigate the “importation of hazardous petroleum products and dumping of substandard diesel into the country”.