NNPC should face Nigerians over refinery questions – Lokpobiri
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Heineken Lokpobiri has called on the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.) to provide clarity regarding the status of the country’s refineries.
Lokpobiri made the statement during an interview on Channels Television’s “Politics Today” on Tuesday, where he addressed concerns that the public had been misled about refinery operations.
He emphasized the importance of transparency and confirmed his intention to request that NNPC representatives come forward to explain the current situation. “I will tell them to come. Let them come and explain,” Lokpobiri stated.
His comments came after the program host highlighted that Nigerians deserved answers regarding conflicting claims about the refineries reaching full capacity, followed by questions about their actual output.
Discussing the matter further, Lokpobiri underscored the need for factual information before forming conclusions. “I’ve said here that it is better for us to have the full facts about these refineries so that we don’t make any hasty conclusions,” he remarked.
In addition to the refinery issues, the minister provided an update on Nigeria’s oil production. He reported that output has seen an increase, citing data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, which shows production averaging approximately 1.84 million barrels per day, including condensates.
Lokpobiri noted that the government aims to raise production above 2 million barrels per day. However, he acknowledged that outdated infrastructure poses a significant challenge. “The reason why we are not able to do more than this is because of the state of our infrastructure,” he explained.
He pointed out that many pipelines in Nigeria are over 50 years old, which complicates the evacuation of additional crude oil, even if production capacity increases. To address this issue, Lokpobiri announced that NNPC has initiated a comprehensive overhaul of its pipeline systems to gradually enhance evacuation capacity.
Furthermore, he mentioned that operators are working to return previously inactive oil wells to production through re-entry programs, following recent asset transfers involving Shell’s former properties, now managed by Renaissance Africa Energy, and Seplat’s acquisition of ExxonMobil’s onshore assets. According to Lokpobiri, these initiatives are contributing to the gradual recovery of Nigeria’s crude oil production.
