The initial excitement surrounding the resumption of operations at the Port Harcourt Refining Company earlier this week appears to have waned, leaving many Nigerians disillusioned.
A visit to the refinery on Friday revealed a lack of activity, with workers attributing the halt to ongoing calibration processes expected to last until next week.
Despite repeated delays, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), Mele Kyari, inaugurated a new plant at the refinery’s Area 5 terminal on Tuesday, claiming that 200 petrol trucks were being loaded daily. However, scepticism quickly emerged, with reports suggesting that the trucks were filled with old stock from storage tanks rather than fresh refinery output.
Empty Loading Bay and Idle Workers
On Friday, a visit to the refinery’s Area 5 revealed no operational activity. Trucks were seen parked, but the loading bay, which features 18 stations, was deserted. Workers appeared idle, with some lying down nearby.
An official, speaking anonymously, disclosed that the trucks loaded earlier in the week contained “dead stock” left in storage since the refinery was shut down between 2015 and 2016.
“Before the refinery was shut down, we had dead stock left in the tank, including Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), Dual-Purpose Kerosene (DPK), and Automated Gas Oil (AGO). During the rehabilitation, these products were evacuated and stored,” he explained.
The official further noted that much of the petrol was “off-spec,” requiring separation from water to make it market-ready.
“The product that was loaded was dead stock. After these stocks are cleared, the tanks will need to be cleaned and debris removed before new products can be pumped and dyed,” he added.
Manual Operations Criticised
The source criticised the manual processes being used at the refinery, saying they fell short of global standards.
“Refineries worldwide operate electronically, but what they are doing here is manual. Most of the pumps used for the event were refurbished,” he stated.
During Kyari’s visit earlier in the week, seven trucks were reportedly prepared for loading, but only five were filled with petrol.
Mixed Reactions to the Resumption
While the Chairman of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Taken Ikpaki, expressed optimism during the inauguration, the reality has been far from promising. He had said:
“More trucks are expected to come into the facility to load products in the coming days.”
However, fewer trucks have arrived, and activities at the site have dwindled. Findings suggest that the PMS remaining in storage is insufficient to fill even five trucks.
At the site, a worker in overalls explained,
“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.”
Another worker added briefly,
“They are calibrating the meters.”
Community Skepticism
Residents of the surrounding area, such as Osaro from Alode in Eleme Local Government Area, expressed frustration.
“After that ceremony with Mele Kyari where they said the refinery had started operation and loading was taking place, what happened afterwards? They continued loading on air, that is on the pages of newspapers and social media,” he remarked.
Official Responses and Denials
When contacted, the National Public Relations Officer of the Petroleum Product Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), Dr Joseph Obelle, attributed the inactivity to ongoing calibration.
“They are calibrating the loading pumps. They will be done today,” he assured.
Meanwhile, the Senate Committee on Petroleum visited the refinery on Thursday for a facility tour, but their findings have yet to be made public.
The NNPC, in a statement, denied claims by a community leader, Timothy Mgbere, that the refinery was not producing fuel. NNPC spokesperson Olufemi Soneye said,
“The old and new Port Harcourt refineries have since been integrated with one single terminal for product load-out. They share common utilities like power and storage tanks. This means that storage tanks and loading gantry which he claimed belong to the new refinery can also receive products from the old refinery.”
Soneye dismissed the claims as “sheer mischief and blatant display of ignorance” and urged the public to disregard them.
The situation at the Port Harcourt Refinery reflects ongoing challenges in Nigeria’s petroleum sector, highlighting the need for transparency and efficiency in meeting public expectations.
