Ojulari Defends NNPCL, Says Refineries Will Work Again Despite Doubts
The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Bayo Ojulari, has shown strong determination that the government-owned Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries will work again.
Contrary to the views of the President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, that the refineries might not work again, Ojulari said the NNPC is highly determined to make sure they resume operations.
Speaking Wednesday at the energy and labour summit organised by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria in Abuja, Ojulari said the Nigerian state and the future of Nigeria’s success are above any individual.
The three refineries have remained dormant over the years despite all efforts to bring them back to life. The Port Harcourt and Warri refineries that were reopened last year were later shut down for another maintenance.
The organised private sector, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, petroleum marketers, and other stakeholders have all called for the sale of the refineries, but Ojulari rejected the advice. In July, Dangote stated that the refineries, which are under the management of the NNPC, had gulped up to $18bn, yet they have refused to work.
Recall that Ojulari himself echoed a similar sentiment in an interview with Bloomberg at the same time in Vienna, Austria, stating that the country had invested heavily in the refineries without seeing any tangible results. He said reviews were ongoing and that would lead the NNPC to do things differently.
However, while speaking at the PENGASSAN summit on Wednesday, the NNPC boss said, “And as you know, we are determined! We are determined to make sure that our refineries work. We’ve been spending a lot of detailed reviews (sic), taking all the learnings.
“We are driven by the fact that the Nigerian states and the future of Nigeria’s success is above any individual of us. That’s what drives our determination to ensure that we put a solution that is sustainable for our refineries.”
Ojulari had earlier officially ruled out the sale of the Port Harcourt refinery, reaffirming his commitment to completing “high-grade rehabilitation” and retention of the plant. Announcing this at a company-wide town hall meeting at the NNPC Towers, Abuja, recently, he stated that the position isn’t a shift. Rather, it was informed by ongoing detailed technical and financial reviews of the Port Harcourt, Kaduna, and Warri refineries.
The statement indicted the past NNPC executive, quoting Ojulari as saying that “the ongoing review indicates that the earlier decision to operate the Port Harcourt refinery prior to full completion of its rehabilitation was ill-informed and sub-commercial.”
The statement read further, “Although progress is being made on all three, the emerging outlook calls for more advanced technical partnerships to complete and high-grade the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt refinery. Thus, selling is highly unlikely, as it would lead to further value erosion.”
The announcement came in the wake of widespread speculation following his remarks at the 2025 OPEC Seminar in Vienna, Austria, earlier this month, where he said during an interview with Bloomberg that “all options are on the table.”
The Port Harcourt refinery was shut down on May 24 for a one-month maintenance. However, it has not been reopened for almost two months. Marketers have repeatedly criticised Ojulari over the state of the refineries, saying he has yet to visit any of the facilities since he assumed office four months ago.