The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, Bayo Ojulari, has stated that the reopening of the Port Harcourt Refinery and Petrochemical Company is a huge waste of resources for the country as it lacks the capacity to run refineries profitably.
Speaking during the ongoing 2026 Nigerian International Energy Summit on Wednesday, Ojulari said effective refinery operations require adequate financing, competent Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractors, as well as strong operational and maintenance capacity—conditions he said NNPC presently does not meet.
It would be recalled that the refinery was rehabilitated at the cost of about $1.5 billion under the leadership of former NNPC GCEO, Mele Kyari, and was reopened in November 2024 after nearly three years of rehabilitation.
The refinery, located at Eleme axis of Rivers State, was revived in November, 2024 and commenced operations thereafter. The NNPCL had stated that the revived plant has the production capacity of 60,000 barrels-per-day and was producing at least 1.4 million liters of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) every day.
Also, the NNPC stated then that the refinery was producing straight-run gasoline (Naphtha) blended into 1.4 million litres of PMS daily; 900,000 litres of kerosene; 1.5 million litres of Automotive Gas Oil (Diesel); 2.1 million litres of Low Pour Fuel Oil (LPFO), and additional volumes of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), also known as cooking gas.
