The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, has promised to get the refineries in the country functional, by mid-2023, technically when President Muhammadu Buhari, the Substantive Minister of Petroleum Resources, will no longer be President of Nigeria, and Minister as well,
In a television programme monitored in Abuja, the Group Managing Director, GMD, of the NNPC, Mr. Mele Kyari, also stated that it is currently impractical to float the refineries, commercially and beneficially.
Kyari spoke alongside the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Timipre Syla, in a virtual dialogue during the programme.
However, Page 36’s findings revealed that by mid-2023, which is June/July, President Muhammadu Buhari who currently doubles as the Minister of Petroleum Resources, would have left both Offices. He is expected to handover to his successor, on May 29, 2023.
While speaking, the NNPC GMD said that Private Investors would work with the Corporation to fix the refineries, adding that, the model adopted in the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Company, NLNG, could be used for the refineries.
He said: “In this model, NNPC is going to be the minority partner in the refineries. So, refineries will start being functional by mid-2023 (June).”
Kyari added that the refineries are currently dormant, but noted that the Oil firm is working hard to get them back to life, in order to begin domestic refining of crude.
On his part, Sylva maintained that the National Assembly would get, and possibly begin work in earnest, on the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, in 2 weeks.
He expressed hopes that the Bill, which had dragged for years without being passed, would become law under the current administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.
The Minister insisted that the downstream Oil sector has been deregulated, and that the pump price of petrol would be determined by global crude oil prices.