The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has reaffirmed its commitment to the full, high-grade rehabilitation and retention of the plant, officially ruling out the sale of the Port Harcourt Refining Company.
This position was announced by NNPCL Group CEO Bashir Bayo Ojulari during a town hall meeting at the NNPCL Towers in Abuja, emphasizing that the decision is informed by ongoing detailed technical and financial reviews of the Port Harcourt, Kaduna, and Warri refineries rather than a change in policy.
Ojulari clarified that the earlier decision to operate the Port Harcourt refinery before the rehabilitation was fully completed was ill-informed and commercially unsound.
The current outlook demands more advanced technical partnerships to finalize and enhance the refinery’s rehabilitation. Selling the refinery is now considered highly unlikely as it would further erode its value.
The Port Harcourt Refinery consists of two units with a combined capacity of 210,000 barrels per day—the old plant at 60,000 bpd and the new plant at 150,000 bpd.
The refinery has struggled with operational issues for over two decades. Rehabilitation began earnestly after a shutdown in 2019, supported by a $1.5 billion Federal Government approval in 2021.
Mechanical completion was announced in December 2023, and production resumed in November 2024, although a temporary shutdown was declared in May 2025 for maintenance and reassessment.
This announcement follows speculation triggered by Ojulari’s earlier statement at the 2025 OPEC Seminar in Vienna, where he mentioned “all options are on the table” regarding Nigeria’s refineries, sparking rumors about possible privatization or sale.
The company’s recent statement firmly distances itself from those speculations and underscores NNPCL’s mandate as custodian of Nigeria’s critical energy infrastructure.
It highlights the Federal Government’s focus on energy security and retaining national control over strategic assets.
Additionally, reports at the town hall covered comprehensive operational progress across NNPCL’s upstream, downstream, finance, gas, power, and new energy sectors, underlining ongoing reforms and areas needing attention to ensure long-term viability of the refineries.
