The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has commenced the supply of crude oil to the Port Harcourt Refinery as part of ongoing efforts by the government to improve refined petroleum products’ supply nationwide amid lingering problems in the downstream market.
A news report on Monday from The Whistler, an online medium, indicated that the state-controlled oil company had already supplied a total of one million barrels of crude oil to the plant for processing into petroleum products.
The online medium reported that its investigations showed that, in preparation for commencement of refining at the plant, its licence had been renewed by the Nigerian petroleum products Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to facilitate its operations.
The multi-billion dollar worth Port Harcourt Refinery, which is the oldest and biggest among the three government-owned oil refineries in the country, commenced operations in 1965.
However, its operations had been disrupted over the past few years due to a combination of factors, especially mismanagement and the failure of the government to upgrade it.
For instance, available data showed that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in March 2021 approved $1.5 billion (about N600 billion) for the rehabilitation of the refinery.
But before then, millions of dollars had been committed to the Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Installation, and commissioning of the plant with little to show for such huge investments on the facility in the past.
