Production has commenced at the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company (WRPC) 34 days after the rollout of petrol from the old Port Harcourt Refinery.

Tankers laden with diesel and kerosene started movement out of the plant yesterday.

Naphthalene, an organic compound used to make mothballs, lubricants and other chemicals are also being produced.

Production of petrol from the 125,000 barrels per day refinery will start soon.

Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited Group Chief Executive Officer Mele Kyari confirmed the restart of the facility on Sunday night.

It was gathered that Areas 2 and 3 as well as the Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC) unit of the refinery are still being worked on to get the facility fully operational.

The WRPC is operating at 60 per cent capacity.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu yesterday welcomed the reopening of the WRPC as a “remarkable way to end 2024.”

He said the development reinforced Nigerians’ confidence in his administration’s drive to revitalise the oil and gas sector.

In a statement, Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga said the President commended the Kyari-led NNPCL management for its commitment to restoring the country’s refining capabilities.

The statement read: “The restart of Warri Refinery brings joy and gladness to me and Nigerians.

“This will further strengthen the hope and confidence of Nigerians for a greater and better future that we promised.

“This development is a remarkable way to end the year following the feat recorded earlier with the old Port Harcourt Refinery.

“I am equally happy that NNPC Limited is implementing my directive to restore all four refineries to good working condition.

“I congratulate Mele Kyari and his team at NNPCL for working hard to restore our national pride and make Nigeria a hub for crude oil refining in Africa.”

He advised the NNPCL to expedite the rehabilitation of the Kaduna Refinery and the second Port Harcourt Refinery, both of which are critical to consolidating Nigeria’s position as a global energy provider.

President Tinubu emphasised his administration’s determination to achieve energy security and transform Nigeria into a hub for oil refining in Africa.

The Nation learnt that partial refining activities took off at the Area 1 plant of the WRPC on Saturday with Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) (diesel), dual-purpose kerosene (DPK), and naphthalene.

A source said efforts to begin refining Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) soonest were on top gear.

Kyari, during a tour of the WRPC with NNPCL board members and other key stakeholders on Sunday, proudly announced: “This plant is running.”

Noting that some people might not believe the restart of the refinery, the NNPCL boss said even though the facility is not 100 per cent completed, the good thing is that “we are bringing products into the market.’’

He was silent on when petrol would roll out of the refinery.

He said: “You see reality yourself; this plant is running. We have not completed it 100 per cent. We are streaming the other parts of the plant as we progress.

“But currently, this plant is running and you will see what is happening. And we are bringing products into the market.

“There are many people who don’t think this is real; there are people who don’t believe real things can happen in our country.

“We believe that this is ripe for our country and all of us have a stake, including the media, in this so that this country becomes a greater place and it is already happening. I just want you to know that everything you see is real.”

A source said “very soon,” petrol production by the refinery would begin.

He said: “The refinery started production on Saturday from the Area 1 plant. We are not producing petrol, just AGO and DPK. The other two plants and the FCC unit are not working yet.

“We are hopeful that production of petrol will start, let me just say, very soon.”

Bago hails Tinubu as IPMAN, Yusuf list gains

Niger State Governor Umaru Bago; Chief Executive Officer, Center for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) Muda Yusuf, and the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria(IPMAN) expressed joy over the restart of the refinery.

They said the development would enhance energy stability.

Bago said reviving the Warri refinery after several years of inactivity indicates that President Tinubu was willing to change the narrative in the petroleum downstream sector.

He said: “The Warri refinery, which is operating at 60 per cent capacity of its 125,000 barrels per day capacity, will further compliment the Port Harcourt refinery which was also revived in November.

”It is a testament to President Tinubu’s renewed hope agenda to better the lives of Nigerians as a major oil-producing nation.’’

He expressed optimism that the Kaduna refinery and the second Port Harcourt refinery would soon be fully operational.

‘Nigerians expect further price drop’

Yusuf said apart from the fact the restart of the Warri refinery would guarantee the country’s energy security and sufficiency drive, it would save the country foreign exchange.

He said: “The Warri refinery coming back to produce is a very commendable development for the country and has tremendous economic benefit, especially in the country’s energy security and sufficiency drive.

“It is also good from the point of view of foreign currency and also for competition in the oil refining sector. It is a very important development.

“It will help our reserves because it will go a long way to help the country reduce the importation of petrol if it cannot be eradicated.

“At this point, the government should take steps to reduce importation, if it cannot be eradicated because that would help to support the local refining industry; that is, both the Dangote Refinery and the NNPCL refineries and the other refineries have to be protected and given equal level of playing field. And the government needs to give all of them fiscal policy support without exemption.

“It is also important that we have a level playing field for all of them. The economies of the production of NNPCL should also be right because the NNPCL refineries are still like government-owned refineries in a way. So we need to ensure that we are getting value from the production.

“On the whole, it is a very good development for our self-sufficiency in petroleum products and we are hoping that with this development, energy prices will come down because this is what Nigerians expect at the end of the day. This is when Nigerians will truly appreciate that we are having improvement in local production.”

IPMAN National President Abubakar Maigandi said an increase in the supply of petroleum products would lead to a price fall.

He added that the recommencement of refining by the facility will guarantee energy security.

Maigandi said: “Our reaction is that it is a welcome development. It means Nigeria is getting full fuel availability all over the country.

“The government is on the right track because prices have started dropping.”

“Whenever there is product availability everywhere, the next thing is the reduction of price since Nigeria is refining the product without importation.”