Petrol to start flowing from Port Harcourt refinery after Christmas - FG

Simply known as the Port Harcourt refinery, the facility commenced operations on Wednesday, December 20, 2023, following the completion of the first phase of rehabilitation work at the plant.

Confirming this development on Thursday, December 21, 2023, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said production of petroleum products would commence after the Christmas break.

The Federal Government had repeatedly assured Nigerians throughout the year that the Port Harcourt refinery would commence operations before the end of 2023.

Lokpobiri, who led members of the Refinery Steering Committee to inspect the facility

Lokpobiri, who made the announcement during the 15th Refineries Rehabilitation Steering Committee meeting held in Port Harcourt earlier today, congratulated the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and Nigerians in general for the feat.

“The meeting today coincides with the commencement of operations at the Port Harcourt refinery,” the Minister stated while speaking at the refinery plant.

He added, "This is just to announce to Nigerians that in fulfilment of our pledge to bring on stream phase 1 of the PH refinery by the end of 2023 and the subsequent streaming of phase 2 in 2024, we heartily announce the mechanical completion and flare-up of the refinery on the 20th of December 2023.

“This heralds the commencement of the production of petroleum products after the Christmas break. We want to thank Nigerians for their patience and trust in the NNPC to deliver on our promise and mandate in the rehabilitation of our refineries.”

Speaking at the briefing, the NNPLC Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kolo Kyari, noted that the company’s employees worked day and night for over 9.6 million man-hours to get the refinery back up again.

“We made a promise that the refinery will be on before the end of the year. We are here to witness this historic event. We are proud of the staff and the entire management of the refinery.

“We are just starting. We want to attain the highest level of production to keep the price of petroleum stable in our country,” Kyari added.

On April 7, 2021, the Federal Government, through the NNPC, officially inked a $1.5bn contract with Italian firm Tecnimont SPA for the rehabilitation programme of the Port Harcourt Refining Company.