The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has refuted claims by a community leader in Alesa, Rivers State, alleging that the Port Harcourt refinery is not yet producing fuel.
In a statement released on Friday, NNPC spokesperson Olufemi Soneye criticized the comments made by the community leader, describing them as a display of ignorance about refinery operations.
Soneye explained that while he would have typically ignored such remarks, he felt compelled to respond in order to clarify the situation.
Timothy Mgbere, reportedly a leader in the Alesa community, appeared on national television on Thursday, where he accused the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) of misleading Nigerians by claiming that the Port Harcourt refinery is already processing crude oil.
According to Soneye, the Port Harcourt refinery is now operating at 90% capacity.
He emphasized that the allegations lacked merit and were inconsistent with the facts, particularly as the refinery has been actively producing and distributing fuel.
Soneye pointed out contradictions in the community leader’s claims.
What NNPC is Saying
The NNPC spokesperson noted that the leader had acknowledged fuel being loaded out from the refinery’s gantry but dismissed it as “old stock” from the previous refinery, which, Soneye argued, further undermined the credibility of the allegations.
“He (Mgbere) claimed that the old Port Harcourt Refinery was only operating skeletally and was not processing PMS. His proof was that the PMS truck-out was done at the gantry of the new Port Harcourt Refinery as against the gantry of the old Port Harcourt Refinery.
“This betrays his scant knowledge of the operations of the refinery. The old and new Port Harcourt Refineries have since been integrated with one single terminal for product load-out.
“They share common utilities like power and storage tanks. This means that storage tanks and loading gantry which he claimed belong to the new Port-Harcourt Refinery can also receive products from the Old Port Harcourt Refinery
“The nameplate capacity of the refinery is 60,000 barrels of oil per day. It is currently producing at 90 per cent throughput which translates to Straight-Run gasoline (Naphtha) blended into 1.4 million liters of PMS, aside from other products like diesel and kerosene.
“We call on the general public to disregard the claims of the self-acclaimed ‘community person’ which are obviously borne out of sheer mischief and blatant display of ignorance,” Soneye said.
What you should know
Following NNPC’s announcement that the long-aged Port Harcourt refinery has become operational, various controversies have arisen regarding its condition.
- Reports have emerged, for instance, suggesting that the refinery is not processing crude oil but is instead blending naphtha with crack 5 to produce gasoline.
- NNPC has debunked this claim, stating that blending is a standard practice globally.
- Meanwhile, marketers have reported that they are yet to receive products from the refinery.
