The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has said it would end the importation of refined petroleum products by December 2024 as all the country’s refineries would be operational by then.
It also stated that the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt Refining Company, under its management, would be completed by December 2023
The state-owned oil firm also projected growth of it’s revenue to N4.5 trillion at the end of 2023, as NNPCL now returns value to shareholders in compliance with the Petroleum Industry Act.
Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd, Mele Kyari, disclosed this when he led officials of the company to a meeting with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, on Thursday.
According to Kyari, Nigeria was on track to stopping the importation of refined petroleum products in 2024 and would emerge as a net exporter of the commodities in the same year.
He assured that all the company’s refineries would become fully operational by 2024 and that the country would become a net exporter of petroleum products by the end of 2024.
Kyari attributed the state of the refineries over the years to the petroleum subsidy regime, pointing out that the removal of the subsidy was already attracting a lot of private-sector investments.
“I can confirm to you that by the end of December this year, we will start the Port Harcourt refinery; early in the first quarter of 2024, we will start the Warri refinery and by the end of 2024, Kaduna refinery will come into operation.
“This is the commitment we are giving today and you can hold us accountable for this. In 2024, many of the initiatives including the rehabilitation of our refineries and also the efforts of small-scale refineries, and the upcoming Dangote refinery, will make Nigeria a net exporter of petroleum products in 2024.
“We will no longer be talking about fuel importation by the end of 2024. I am very optimistic that this will crystallise,” Kyari stated.
In his remarks, Abbas called for the privatisation of Nigeria’s refineries.
Meanwhile, oil marketers, on Thursday, confirmed the readiness of the Port Harcourt refinery, as they stated that its operations, which could begin in January 2024, would lead to a considerable drop in the prices of refined petroleum products.
