Port Harcourt Refinery Recommences Operation (Video)

The Port Harcourt Refinery in Rivers State has recommenced operation on Wednesday, 20th December.

Naija News gathered that the refinery has a combined capacity to produce 210,000 barrels per day.

According to a viral video seen on X (formerly Twitter) by Naija News correspondent, the refinery’s flare indicated the commencement of oil refining.

The development comes months after the Federal Government promised to ensure the production of refined products at the facility in December 2023.

Recall that the Minister of State for Petroleum (Oil) Senator Heineken Lokpobiri said in August that the Port Harcourt refinery will commence operation in December 2023.

According to the minister, the objective is to ensure the country stops importing fuel.

Corroborating Lokpobiri’s stance, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, stated that importing petroleum products into the country will cease by December 2024.

Kyari said the Warri refinery operation will begin in the first quarter of 2024, and by the end of 2024, the Kaduna refinery will come into operation.

In March 2021, the Federal Executive Council approved $1.5 billion to rehabilitate the Port Harcourt Refinery, and available data showed that the Nigerian government has spent N11.35 trillion ($25 billion) in the past ten years on fixing the country’s three refineries.

Watch the video below.