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experts urge refineries

Reps support NNPCL’s refineries rehabilitation

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The morale of staff of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) was boosted within the week as the House of Representatives declared support to the quest by the company to embark on the rehabilitation of the nation’s refineries.

The support was declared by the house ad hoc Committee on Refineries after NNPCL intensified effort to reduce the nation’s dependence on importation of petroleum products.

Speaking during an oversight visit to the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company (WRPC), Chairman of the Committee, Rep. Abdul Ganiyu Johnson, said that they were ready and willing to work and support the NNPC towards realising the objective of the rehabilitation.

Johnson said that the committee’s visit was to ascertain the level of job that is ongoing in the refinery while expressing satisfaction that the contractor has already mobilised equipment and personnel to the site.

The chairman gave the assurance that the committee would support any measure being taken by the NNPCL to ensure the commencement of production that would ultimately reduce dependence on fuel importation.

Giving an overview of the plant, the acting Managing Director of the Company, Mr Desmond Inyamah, disclosed that a Quick –fix Maintenance Service Contract for the refinery was signed in June and the timeline for the completion of Area 1&2 is 12 months.

Inyamah noted that the 12 months would begin to count from the commencement of work, adding that the refinery would operate at 60 per cent of its installed capacity after the completion of the Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit (FCC).

He expressed delight at the show of solidarity and support by the legislators.

It would be recalled that the quick fix maintenance service agreement for the Warri refinery was signed with Daewoo Nigeria limited on June 24 in Abuja.

Refineries Rehab: Reps Back NNPCL, Declare Total Support

In another development, the Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers (NSCHE) conferred the institution’s Honorary Fellowship on the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the NNPCL, Malam Mele Kyari.

The conferment took place at the society’s 30th Fellows’ Conference in Abuja.

Speaking at the ceremony, Prof. Ayodele Ogunye, a former president of the society, stated that the honour was in recognition of the valuable contributions of the Kyari led NNPC towards the advancement of Chemical Engineering in Nigeria.

Ogunye noted that the company remained the highest employer of chemical engineers in the country.

Kyari, who was the Guest Speaker at the conference with the theme: New Perspectives for Addressing Upstream, Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Issues in Nigeria”, disclosed that the new NNPC was open to a new business model of taking equity in viable projects against sole ownership.

He said the major focus of the company was to ensure that the nation’s refineries returned to optimal production capacity before presenting them to stakeholders to decide on the best way to manage the assets in the interest of all concerned.

The NNPCL GCEO pointed out that the company while taking advantage of the opportunities provided by current assets to satisfy the energy needs of today, it looked forward to converting the plants into other useful purposes toward the 2060 net zero commitment.

In his remarks, the conference chairman, retired Maj.-Gen. IBM Haruna, advised the leadership of the new NNPCL to take seriously the issue of good corporate governance based on transparency and accountability.

This, Haruna said would enable the company to gain the confidence of the people, especially on matters of land and other operational assets.

On his part, the President of the NSCHE and former Group Executive Director, Gas and Power Directorate of the NNPC, Mr Seidu Mohammed, commended the NNPCL GCEO for the achievements recorded within the few years in office.

He said that the body was ready to proffer workable solutions toward assisting the new NNPCL achieve its desired goal, emphasising that the society had pool of experienced professionals in that regard.

Sylva calls for collaboration in the area of energy diplomacy

Shell set to reduce carbon footprint

265 illegal refineries in SPDC corridor – Sylva

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Mr Timipre Sylva, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, says there are about 265 illegal refineries in the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) corridor alone as Nigeria continues to grapple with oil theft.

Sylva spoke at the 60th Anniversary of the Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS) of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) on Thursday in Lagos.

The minister, represented by Mr Kamaru Busari, Acting Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, said vandalism and oil theft had resulted in Nigeria producing less than one million barrels of crude oil per day.

Sylva said the country’s inability to meet its Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) quota had deprived it of the much needed oil revenue when oil prices were very high in the international market.

He said, nevertheless, the government was engaging host communities, security agencies and deploying technology to address the issue in order to boost investors’ confidence in the sector.

On his part, Malam Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd. (NNPCL), said the company was not unmindful of the current challenges, particularly security in the operational areas and cash call arrears settlement.

Kyari, represented by Mr Dapo Segun, Deputy General Manager, Treasury, NNPCL, however,  maintained that the company was resilient and would work with other stakeholders to overcome the security challenges.

He said: “We have deployed creative solutions to tackle security challenges in the operational areas.

“Technological intervention for both monitoring and prompt intervention would also be set up. The tackling of the menace is a top priority for NNPCL.

“Also, our new governance framework provides us autonomy and opportunity for self-accounting hence cash-call settlement including arrears would be settled and handled promptly going forward.”

Earlier in his address of welcome, Mr Rick Kennedy, Chairman OPTS, said OPTS had made significant contributions to the development of the Nigerian oil and gas industry over the past 60 years.

Kennedy, represented by Mr Osagie Okunbor, Vice Chairman, OPTS, said

OPTS members had demonstrated resilience and commitment in the face of economic, security, environmental and funding challenges.

He said: “We have continued to make significant contributions to Nigeria’s development.

“As a group, OPTS member companies account about 90 per cent of Nigeria oil production and contributes significantly to the domestic and export gas production and supply.

“Over the last decade, OPTS member companies accounted for 40-60 per cent of government revenue and 85 to 95 per cent of export earnings.

“OPTS member companies are also proud to have paid tens of billions of dollars in taxes, levies, royalties, rents, and license fees to the Nigerian government.”

Kennedy, who is also the Managing Director, Chevron Nigeria/Mid-Africa Business Unit, said the OPTS companies had also created over 600,000 direct and indirect jobs for Nigerians.

Also, Mr Bunmi Toyobo, Executive Director,OPTS, thanked the 29 companies who were members of the OPTS for their contributions to its

achievements in the past 60 years.

“This celebration is to demonstrate our abiding faith in Nigeria as a group and belief in the boundless growth potential of our country, given the enabling environment,” he said.

refinery

No refinery is functional in Nigeria – NNPC

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Mr Mele Kyari, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd says there is no single refinery working at the moment in the country.

Kyari disclosed this when he appeared before the House of Rep joint Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream) on Tuesday in Abuja.

The committee is investigating the increased in prices of diesel and cooking gas.

Kyari said that the country’s refineries were not working at the moment, adding that the situation was regretable but the NNPC was doing something to bring the refineries back to work.

According to him, the refineries will not come back tomorrow, there is a process going on. “We have decided to do a quick fix for Warri refinery.”

He said that no one could guarantee the security of petroleum supply, adding that countries were preserving excess volume that they had in their kitty.

“The world has never seen this kind of uncertainty, today countries are stockpiling products. Shortly before COVID-19 the world was already facing shortfall of 3 million barrel of supply of oil,” he said.

He said that there had been no control to manage the energy crisis across the world, stressing that ” to guarantee energy security means you just make product available at anytime and by any cost.”

The GMD also disclosed that over 200 illegal refineries were being operated across the country.

He said that the solution was to restore crude oil production, adding that there was a massive intervention that was ongoing and by the end of July “we will restore production to a level that is reasonable.

“Many European countries are asking for rationing gas, they are asking people to alternate their Air Conditioning.

“Today, countries are toying with subsidy because prices are so high because they don’t think they can manage inflation associated with it.”

Mr Farouk Ahmed, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum, said that the current geopolitical crisis in Ukraine and Russia had resulted in the increase of petroleum product.

He added that  this was because Russia was one of the major producer, adding that the war had affected petroleum products and it also affected all nations across the world and Nigeria was not an exemption.

He said that the landing cost of petroleum product was also a factor, adding that the high cost was not limited to Nigeria.

“We need to see what can be done to alleviate the suffering of the people. If our refineries are back on stream and make foreign exchange available at the official rate of N400 per dollar.

“And if our refineries come back we can then get a reprieve. We also need to address the issue of vandalism.

Rep. Abdullahi Gaya, Chairman, House Committee on Downstream, noted that Nigeria had refining capacity but because none were functioning which led the country to her sorry state.

He said that there was need to find solution to the high cost of diesel and cooking gas in a bid to cushion the effect on the generality of Nigerians.

Some of the lawmakers who spoke, however, said that Kyari and Ahmed expressed helpless situation.

“You have just presented a hopeless situation, you have the responsibility to proffer solution. If there is no solution then why are we here.

The lawmakers said that they were particularly concerned about the plight of Nigerians, as many of them collect a minimum wage of N30,000.

They noted that Nigeria may have to go the way of other nation by subsidising cooking gas.

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IPMAN supports clamp down on illegal refineries

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The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has urged government at all levels to intensify efforts to check the operations of illegal refineries in the country.

IPMAN’s President, Mr Chinedu Okoronkwo, made on Friday in Lagos and said the recent explosion at one of the illegal refineries at Abaezi forest in Ohaji-Egbema Local Government Area of Imo had again brought to the forefront the dangers of engaging in such nefarious activities.

He said: “IPMAN as a body commiserates with the government and people of Imo over the deaths and injuries recorded in the incident.

“We believe this tragedy could have been averted if the various tiers of government and the security agencies were alive to their responsibilities.

“We are, therefore, calling on the local, state and federal governments to intensify efforts to check the operations of these illegal refineries within their domains.”

Okoronkwo said Nigeria was losing billions of naira to crude oil thieves, which was affecting the nation’s economy negatively.

He added that the environmental degradation being caused by their activities could not be overemphasised, especially in the Niger Delta region.

Okoronkwo urged other state governors to emulate Rivers Governor, Nyesom Woke, who had taken the campaign against oil bunkering in the state very seriously.

He said on its part, IPMAN would continue to work with the government, security agencies and other stakeholders to find a lasting solution to the challenges confronting the oil and gas industry.

“We believe that part of the ways we can reduce their activities is for governments to begin the establishment of modular refineries in some of these areas.

“If these people are positively engaged, the problem of oil theft and illegal refineries will be reduced in Nigeria,” Okoronkwo said.

thumbsupUSRefinery

Group tasks  Nigeria on ailing refineries

A socio-political pressure group, Advanced Level Movement (ALM), has urged the Federal Government to revamp the ailing refineries in the country to ensure undisrupted supply of petroleum products nationwide.

Dr Haroun Ajah, the national chairman of the group, made the call in a statement on Monday in Abakaliki.

Ajah said that revamping Port Harcourt, Kaduna and Warri refineries would make them to also save lots of foreign exchange required for the importation of petroleum into the country.

He explained that the importation of the products would drastically reduce if not eliminated if the refineries were made to function optimally.

He said that the suspension of the subsidy removal should be an opportunity for stakeholders in the petroleum sector to address issues of turnaround maintenance of the refineries.

The chairman commended the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration for withdrawing its earlier decision to remove fuel subsidy.

“We commend and appreciate the Buhari administration on the immediate suspension and 18 months extension of the petrol subsidy removal.

“This gesture is very commendable and shows that the administration is in tune with the current economic realities the country is facing.

“It is also a pointer that Mr President knows and understands that the subsidy withdrawal would have added to the existing hardship Nigerians are facing”, he said.

Ajah called on the citizens to support the ongoing efforts by the Buhari administration to fix the economy.

refinery

Dikio declares war on illegal refineries

The Interim Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Col. Milland Dixon Dikio (rtd), says he supports the war against illegal refineries across the Niger Delta region.. 

A statement issued on Sunday by Mr Nneotabase Egbe, Special Adviser on Media to Dikio, quoted him as giving his endorsement at the weekend in Port Harcourt while speaking at the 50th anniversary dinner and award night of the Port Harcourt Polo Club.

Dikio applauded the move by Gov Nyesom Wike for leading the efforts to stamp out illegal refineries in Rivers, saying that Wike’s efforts should be complemented by all stakeholders in the region. 

He said illegal refineries were not the only cause of the environmental devastation in the region, insisting  that other harmful practices were also responsible for polluting the environment. 

“I commend the Rivers State Governor, Wike, for taking on the issue of illegal oil refineries also known as kpofire head on.

“But, a lot of work still needs to be done. Kpofire is not the only pollutant and so individually and collectively what are we doing, especially the corporate entities to reduce unwanted emissions into our environment”? Dikio asked.

Dikio, also urged the people of the Niger Delta to stop bickering over the  percentage in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), saying that opportunities would be created for future negotiation. 

“I will say that instead of quarrelling about the percentage, we should be talking about what to do with the percentage we got, build on it and we can have another discussion after that”, Dikio said. 

While reinforcing the PAP’s Train, Employ and Mentor (TEM) model, Dikio  said in the next 10 years, the Niger Delta should have a critical mass that would make people of the region competitive in all spheres. 

He said: “We’re looking for partnership with businesses that can train these ex-agitators and give them the required skills for employment in their businesses.

“We in PAP will pay for the training. It is a partnership because we want those who train them to guarantee that they will employ them. 

“We are doing this as a departure from the old model which only trained people and put them back in the bloated unemployment market. We feel that is a waste of money and everybody’s time. It also increases the anxiety level in the economy and the polity”. 

Earlier, the Chief Host, King Alfred Diette-Spiff, said the game of Polo was catching up in the South-South  noting that contrary to what many people thought, Polo was no longer an elite game. 

On his part, President of the Port Harcourt Polo Club, Mr. Chukwudi Dimkpa said that from its humble beginning in 1972,the club had grown to become the preferred Polo club in Nigeria and Africa. 

Refinery-2

Resuscitate refineries to boost economy, ex-CBN director urges Nigeria

Dr Titus Okunroumu, a former Director of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has called on the Federal Government to intensify efforts at resuscitating the nation’s refineries to boost the economy.

Okunroumu said in Sang-Ota, Ogun, that most of the refineries were operating below optimal level, leading to importation of bulk of the refined petroleum products into the country.

“The federal government needs to address the under- production of the refineries so as to end the subsidy challenges in the country,” he said.

The former CBN director emphasised the need for the country to leverage its resources to boost revenue.

“If the refineries are working effectively, the country will not look for people to sell crude to.

“You can imagine countries coming to Nigeria to buy refined petroleum products from us,” Okunroumu said.

This development, he said, would reduce pressure on the economy and boost the country’s internally-generated revenue, as the debt profile would reduce.

Modular-Refinery

Lack of funds impedes development of refineries in Nigeria

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As Nigeria continues to record high level of expired refinery licences, experts, on Tuesday, identified lack of funds and feedstock, as factors militating against the construction of new plants.

The experts, who expressed their positions in different interviews said such investors have the right to reapply for the renewal of their licences.

Specifically, in an interview with Vanguard, Lead Promoter, EnergyHub Nigeria, Dr. Felix Amieyeofori, said: “The investors encounter many problems, including lack of funds and feedstock. But the good thing about it is that they have the right to reapply.”

Similarly, former Managing Director, Niger Delta Petroleum Resources, Dr. Layi Fatona, said: “conscientious focus and determination are required in the pursuit and delivery of any project in the Nigerian airspace.”

He added: “There is no capital long enough and not much of equity is available to pursue refining projects.” Meanwhile, the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, has denied revoking 32 refinery licences in the country.

Some publications, not Vanguard had erroneously reported that the agency revoked the licences recently.

But Department of Petroleum Resources ( DPR) reported: “We wish to clarify that DPR did not revoke any refinery licence.  Refinery licence like our other regulatory instruments has validity periods for investors to attain certain milestones.

“This implies that after the validity period for the particular milestone, the licence becomes inactive until the company reapplies for revalidation to migrate to another milestone. This does not in any way translate to revocation of the licence of the company.”

It added: “DPR in line with the aspirations of the government initiated the refinery revolution programme of government aimed at boosting local refining capacity by enabling business and creating new opportunities for investors with the granting of modular and conventional refinery licenses.

DPR will continue to provide support to investors in the oil and gas industry in Nigeria using our regulatory instruments of licences, permits and approvals to stimulate the economy and align with government’s job creation initiatives.”

Source

Zambia sourcing partner for oil refinery

Expert calls for full privatisation of refineries

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By Chris Ndibe

Chief Adegboyega Adegoke, Executive Director, Finance and Chief Financial Officer of OES Energy Services, has called on the Federal Government to privatise all government-owned refineries in Nigeria.

He made the call on Thursday in Ibadan after being honoured as the distinguished personality of the year by the Oyo State Council of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).

Adegoke, a patron of the NUJ, Oyo State Council, is also the Ajia Balogun of Ibadan land.

Adegoke said that the privatisation of the refineries and full deregulation of the petroleum industry would go a long way in solving the problems revolving around the petroleum sector of the country.

He said that government needed to hands off the regulation of pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), saying such action would create avenue for competition among the major distributors.

Adegoke said that the money released regularly for maintenance of refineries without producing anything, could be diverted into the provision of other infrastructure.

He maintained that the late former President Umar Musa Yar’adua made mistake by reversing the privatisation of refineries done by former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Adegoke said that Obasanjo did the right thing at the point of leaving when he privatised the refineries, saying the reversal drew the country backward for many years.

According to him, government should remove its hand completely from PMS the way it did with diesel.

“Government should remove its hand from the oil industry the way it was done in telecommunications sector.

“So it should remove its hands completely.

“Full deregulation means if you like you import from Russia, Israel, U.S. or UK.

“So, there will be competition similar to what happened in the telecommunications industry.

“Before these global system of mobile (GSM) networks were licenced, Nigeria Telecommunications Service (NITEL) was having a field day.

“I was begging for a line because the entire lines we had in Nigeria was 400,000. Now, we have millions.”

He said that government could not continue to spend huge amount of money on the refineries at the expense of other infrastructure.

“Government can’t also continue paying salary without doing anything. These are refineries that never produced for many years.

“Technology has gone beyond that level. We need to move on, so the best way is full privatisation of the refineries,” he said.

Adegoke appreciated the NUJ on the honour bestowed on him, saying it would spur him to do more for humanity.

“I feel good. I have always been part of them (newsmen). I take this as a catalyst. Something to energise me and to do more. It is good.

“It makes me feel great and it means they acknowledge and also appreciate what I have been doing,” he said.

experts urge refineries

NNPC reports refineries’ upgrade through Joint venture timely

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By Tanko Mohammed

Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has said that the full scale upgrade of Nigeria’s refineries through Joint Venture partnership was timely.

Dr Bala David, Group General Manager, Renewable Energy Division of NNPC, said the move by the Federal Government would boost the local refineries’ profit going forward and also increase domestic crude production.

He spoke on Monday at the Virtual Oil Trading and Logistics (OTL) Africa  Downstream Expo 2020.

“We have seen many refineries in Africa forced to shut down because of low worldwide refining margins, small local markets, high operating costs, and poor yields (AfDB report).

“The refineries in Nigeria for instance, have operated below 40 per cent capacity utilisation over the past years; and about 70 to 80 per cent of the local petroleum products demand is met through product importation.

“The federal government’s decision for full scale upgrade of Nigeria’s refineries through joint venture  partnership is timely.

“This will boost local refineries’ profit  margin going forward, ” he said.

According to him, the government, in readiness for the foreseeable future, has put in place necessary policy to guide investors in exploring and investing in the renewable energy sector in Nigeria.

David said the government had set up the Nigerian Biofuels Industry Programme which aimed at leveraging the agricultural sector for the commercial production of biofuels from some selected energy crops.

He said the biofuels would be used as blend stock for NNPC Refineries Gasoline and Diesel to enhance Octane and Cetane ratings respectively.

David said : “Statistics showed that Nigeria has about 33 million hectares of arable land with favourable agro-climatic conditions across the country and

only about 10 per cent is under cultivation.

“In this light, NNPC is in the process of forming a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for the development of a 91 million liters per annum Cassava to-Fuel Ethanol facility in Okeluse, Ondo State.

” The project is to be constructed in the Complex under a Zero-Waste Concept. The African Oil  and Gas Downstream sector will need to prepare itself for the opportunity the Biofuels Industry offers”.

In his goodwill message, Senate President, Mr Ahmad Lawan, said the theme of the 2020 Expo, “Downstream Energy: Renewing Markets, Expanding Options” was very apt.

“This is because it speaks to contemporary policy focus and the importance of alternatives.

“It reminds us of the need to review the markets and stimulate it further, beyond its present state.

“The market is central to the circulation and consumption of products, ” Lawan, represented by Sen. Sabo Nagudu said.

In his address of welcome,  Mr Emeka Akabogu, Chairman, OTL Africa commended the federal government for deregulating the downstream sector.

“However, announcement must morph into form, defined by competition, peer review, consumer value and overall market growth.’’