Nigerians Lose Hope As Port Harcourt Refinery Fails To Meet Seventh Restart Deadline Despite NNPCL’s Repeated Assurances Written By Oshiobugie John- As Nigeria grapples with ongoing fuel scarcity, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has once again fallen short on its commitments to revive operations at the Port Harcourt refinery. This marks the seventh instance where promises made by NNPCL officials have not materialized, highlighting persistent challenges in the country’s fuel supply…
Most recently, NNPCL officials, including Group Chief Executive Officer Mele Kyari, had assured the public of the refinery’s imminent restart, setting deadlines that have repeatedly gone unmet. Originally pledged to be operational before the end of former president Muhammadu Buhari’s administration in May 2023, subsequent deadlines have also come and gone without fruition.
The latest pledge came from NNPCL’s Chief Financial Officer, Umar Ajiya, who indicated a September 2024 restart date. However, as of this report, no concrete progress has been made, with responses to inquiries from legal expert Femi Falana indicating uncertainty over completion timelines.
During a Senate appearance, Mele Kyari affirmed plans for the refinery’s activation by early August, yet the reality on the ground continues to be one of continued fuel imports and non-functional refineries. In 2023 alone, Nigeria imported 20.2 billion liters of petrol, underscoring the refinery’s critical importance and its current state of disrepair despite substantial financial investments.
The failure of the Port Harcourt refinery to resume operations underscores broader systemic challenges within Nigeria’s petroleum sector, where promises of refinery revitalization have consistently fallen short against the backdrop of persistent fuel shortages and import dependency.