Petroleum marketers and northern advocacy groups are calling out the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for what they describe as neglect and poor handling of the Port Harcourt Refinery rehabilitation.
The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) says the company’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Ojulari, has not shown enough commitment to restoring the refinery. PETROAN’s Eastern Zonal Chairman, Sunny Nkpe, visited the facility last weekend and found that work was moving far slower than expected, even though the plant was shut on May 24 for a 30-day maintenance.
Nkpe said contractors on-site complained of being owed for over a year, and that repairs on key units were almost complete before Ojulari took office. He warned that the prolonged shutdown is forcing thousands of tanker drivers and marketers out of work and is leaving private refineries to dominate the market and push up prices. He urged President Bola Tinubu to intervene, saying the refinery’s revival could help stabilise fuel prices in several southern and central states.
At the same time, two northern groups — the Arewa Community for Empowerment and Development and the Arewa Consultative Youth Movement — have filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court in Kaduna against NNPC’s Chief Financial Officer, Dapo Segun. They accuse him of failing to deliver results on the Port Harcourt and Warri refinery repairs as well as the controversial OVH Energy acquisition, despite huge investments.
The groups allege Segun is being protected from investigation by the EFCC and DSS, while former northern NNPC executives face prosecution for similar issues. They are seeking a court order to compel the EFCC to investigate, arrest, and prosecute Segun, and to suspend him from office while the probe is ongoing.
Nigeria’s refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna have operated well below capacity for years despite billions spent on rehabilitation projects. The $1.5 billion Port Harcourt overhaul announced in 2021 was expected to restore production, but the facility remains idle.
NNPCL has yet to respond to the accusations, and efforts to reach the company’s officials have been unsuccessful.
