The Board Chairman of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL)Chief Pius Akinyelure has described the completion of rehabilitation work on Area 5 Plant of the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC) as “historic”, stressing that the board was proud of the staff and management of the refinery.
The chairman stated this during an inspection tour of the rehabilitation project, which also coincided with the 15th Refineries’ Rehabilitation Steering Committee Meeting, yesterday.
“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.
In his speech, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said the first phase of the PHRC was completed on December 20, 2023.
“The meeting today coincides with the commencement of operations at the Port Harcourt refinery. This is to announce to Nigerians that in fulfilment of our pledge in completing phase one of the Port Harcourt refinery by the end of 2023, and the subsequent streaming of phase two in 2024, we happily announce the mechanical completion of flare start-up on December 20, 2023.
“This heralds the commencement in the production of petroleum products after the Christmas break. We want to thank Nigerians for their patience and trust in the NNPC to deliver on our promise and mandate in the rehabilitation of our refineries”, he stated.
Lokpobiri noted that with the completion of the first phase of the refinery, the remaining refineries in Warri and Kaduna would follow.
”The mechanical part of the plant is completed and this is the beginning of not just the Port Harcourt refinery phases one and two, but the one for Warri and then the one in Kaduna, so that we will be able to benefit from this massive investment that the country has made,” the minister stated.
Also speaking, the Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, said the PHRC would produce cooking gas, adding that this would lead a reduction in the importation of the commodity.
He said, “In August when we came here we were told that by December this plant will come on stream, and today we have witnessed that. So I’m really impressed.
“And it is good news equally to LPG (cooking gas) users that as the refinery begins after Christmas, we will have sufficient supply of LPG, which will automatically reduce the imports at that level. So it is something to celebrate.
“With the coming up onstream of this phase one, others will follow as well, because the NNPC has fulfilled the first assignment and I believe others will be completed on schedule.”
In his own speech, the Group Chief Executive Officer, NNPC Ltd., Mr. Mele Kyari, said as of December 15, 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.
On his part, 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.
Also speaking, the Managing Director, Tecnimont Nig. Ltd., Fabio Del Cioppo, one of the EPC contractors of the rehabilitation project, said his company remained committed to fulfilling the terms of the contract.
