NNPC says No refinery has been sold

None of the country’s refineries has been sold to any group or corporate entity, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has said.

The NNPC also said it had not given approval for the concession of any of its refineries in Delta, Port Harcourt, and Kaduna.

The three refineries managed by the national oil firm include the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, Port Harcourt Refining Company and the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company.

The corporation’s declaration on the status of the country’s three refineries was in response to an enquiry on whether the NNPC had sold any of the facilities following the recent directive of the Senate to the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

When asked on Saturday if the corporation had sold or put up any of the country’s national assets on concession, the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, NNPC, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, stated, “The NNPC has not sold any refinery to anybody, group, corporate entity or organisation.”

Last year, there were several calls from top public and private sector officials requesting the Federal Government to sell some national assets in order to reflate the Nigerian economy, which sparked a national debate.

The Senate on Tuesday directed the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the Minister, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, to immediately stop all processes relating to the planned concession of the Port Harcourt Refinery to Agip and Oando Plc.

The directive came as the upper legislative chamber set up an ad hoc committee to carry out an investigation to determine how and why such a deal was sealed and the criteria used to select Agip/Eni and Oando Plc to maintain and operate the refinery.