Mele Kyari: Port Harcourt refinery to begin production by month end

Mele Kyari, group chief executive officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, says the Port Harcourt refinery would begin production by the end of March.

Kyari spoke after a meeting with the senate ad hoc committee investigating the various turnaround maintenance (TAM) projects of Nigerian refineries.

“In the next two weeks, production will start. We did mechanical completion of Port Harcourt, that was what we said in Dec 2023,” he said.

“That means we are done with our rehabilitation work, now you are to test if this completion is okay.”

Kyari said mechanical works had been completed at the Warri refinery, and the facility is undergoing regulatory compliance procedures.

The NNPC GCEO, however, said the Kaduna refinery would not be completed until December.

Kyari said all the crude lines are active, adding that over 450,000 barrels have been delivered to the Port Harcourt refinery.

“Yes, there may be security issues, but also government is responding to the situation,” he said.

“We are happy to work with the committee and promise not to hide anything from them.” 

Meanwhile, Ifeanyi Uba, chairman of the ad hoc committee, expressed satisfaction with the information provided by the NNPC.

Ubah said the committee had an understanding of when to go for oversight functions at the refineries.

“I believe everything is positively on track,” Uba said.

“We want the refineries to work and we have gotten a firm promise from NNPCL on when they will begin operation.

“The next step is to visit the refineries and assess the progress.” 

The committee is slated to meet with Kyari on March 19, on issues relating to crude oil theft.

The NNPC completed the mechanical phase of the turnaround maintenance at the Port Harcourt refinery on December 21, 2023.