Port Harcourt Refinery reportedly halts operations

By OUR REPORTER, Port Harcourt

Despite denial by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) of exaggerated report of resumption of production at the Port Harcourt Refinery, developing stories have it that activities at the crude oil processing site were halted on Friday November 29, 2024 and no loading of products took place at the bay.

The DEFENDER reports that many Nigerians are already expressing concerns about what they describe as the back and forth position of the government’s oil company, NNPCL, regarding the status of Port Harcourt Refinery.

Tuesday’s announcement of the Refinery resumption was simply one of several celebrations of it since Tinubu’s administration cane to office in May 2023.

Former President Muhammadu Buhari, at the tail end of his eight-year administration in 2021, had pumped a $1.5 billion foreign loan secured from the West into rehabilitation of the refineries particularly the Port Harcourt Refinery with two years period of completion ripe in August 2023.

The completion of the rehabilitation happened three months in office of Tinubu, who acknowledged and celebrated same.

Since then, many dates have been given by the Federal Government as to when the Port Harcourt Refinery will roll back to work but none of these dates was actually kept until Tuesday November 26 when the news broke out that Port Harcourt Refinery had resumed production.

The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Melee Kyari, inaugurated the new plant at the Area 5 terminal of the refinery on Tuesday November 26, 2024 with the claim that 200 petrol trucks would be loading daily from the plant.

Not only President Bola Ahmed Tinubu celebrated the resumption of crude oil processing activities at the Refinery but also, the NNPCL told Nigerians that 200 trucks would lift products from the facility beginning from same day.

On Wednesday November 27, whereas number of trucks that actually lifted products from the Port Harcourt Refinery on Tuesday was not made public, marketers who lifted Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) from the facility revealed that the government’s company sold to them at N1,045 which N75 higher than the price sold by privately owned Dangote Refinery.

It will be recalled that Dangote had been blamed by the same government’s side for “hike in price of fuel” sold to it although Dangote swiftly countered it, saying it was not its job in the still regulated oil sector to determination be prices.

When the government finally announced full deregulation, the NNPCL and Independent marketers reportedly opted for continued importation saying it will be cheaper than Dangote’s petrol of N990, a price fixed upon commencement of full deregulation but later reduced by N20 to N970 “to thank Nigerians'” for standing with the privately owned Refinery in the face of its tribulations.

A day after the news of NNPCL selling at N1,045 per litre, Thursday November 28, Timothy Mgbere, Secretary of Adesa host community in Rivers State cane on a national television, Arise News, to say the claim by NNPCL that Port Harcourt Refinery had resumed operations was not true as, according to him, the products lifted from the site were from three years old storage facility and not from fresh production.

He said all units of the newly rehabilitated refinery was yet to function, adding that although the NNPCL told Nigerians 200 trucks would lift products from the automated loading bay, only six trucks actually from that Tuesday through the time he spoke Thursday morning.

Mgbere questioned to know why it was difficult for the automated loading systems to supply fuel to 200 trucks when, even a manual loading system takes not more than 45 minutes per truck and, in the end, only six trucks loaded.

The NNPCL in a statement earlier on a Friday denied the allegation that the Refinery was not working, saying it is fully operational.

However, a media report emerged Saturday November 30 saying a visit by it “to the refinery on Friday revealed that there was no activity on site, as some workers met by our correspondent claimed that the refinery was undergoing calibration which might last till next week,” said Saturday PUNCH.

Corroborating Mgbere’s allegation, the media report confirmed that upon visiting the Port Harcourt Refinery Area 5 on Friday, “our correspondent observed no signs of activity.”

An official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, revealed that the loaded trucks contained “dead stock”.

He said, “Before the refinery was shut down between 2015/2016, we had dead stock left in the tank, including some Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) DPK (kerosene), and Automated Gas Oil (diesel).

“So, these products were in large quantities in stores in those tanks. During the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt Refinery, Old Area 5, those products were evacuated from the tanks for storage.”

However, he noted that the large quantity of refined petrol was “off-spec,” requiring separation from water to obtain the main product in preferred colours.

“But for DPK, it is in large quantity but they have not pushed it from the tank where it was kept after refined ready for commercial purposes.

“So, the product that was loaded was dead stock, that is the old product that was in the system. So, after these dead stocks, they will have to clean the tank, remove all the debris before pumping the new project into that tank, and redye it,” the source said.

The worker highlighted that refineries worldwide should operate electronically, not manually.

“But what they are trying to do at the Port Harcourt Refinery is manual, which cannot match the new digital pumps. Most of the pumps used for the event were refurbished,” he added.

He explained that during Kyari’s visit on Tuesday, seven trucks were prepared for loading, but only five were filled with petrol.

The Chairman of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Taken Ikpaki, while speaking to journalists during the inauguration of the facility on Tuesday, had expressed optimism.

He stated that more trucks were expected to come into the facility to load products in the coming days.

But rather than more trucks coming into the refinery, the number of trucks has dwindled, the report said

Around 1.30pm when our correspondent visited, he observed that most workers and drivers appeared idle as no machinery was operational.

Nine trucks were seen parked, but the loading bay, numbered from one to 18, was empty and deserted, with some workers lying down.

When asked about the lack of loading activity, a worker in overalls said, “They are de-watering, removing the water under the PMS. Maybe there will be loading after that, but we don’t know what time today,” he said according to Saturday PUNCH.