NNPC shut Warri, Port Harcourt, Kaduna refineries over heavy losses — Ojulari

By Kunle Sanni –

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited shut down operations at the Warri, Port Harcourt and Kaduna refineries after determining that the facilities were incurring heavy financial losses, the Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr Bayo Ojulari, has said.

Ojulari disclosed this on Wednesday while speaking at the ongoing Nigerian International Energy Summit (NIES), noting that the refineries were operating at a significant cost to the country despite political pressure to keep them running.

He said an internal review conducted after his appointment showed that the refineries were “destroying value” rather than contributing meaningfully to Nigeria’s energy supply.

“The first thing that became clear was that we were running at a monumental loss to Nigeria. We were simply wasting money,” Ojulari said.

According to him, although crude cargoes were supplied to the refineries monthly, capacity utilisation averaged only between 50 and 55 per cent, while operating and contracting costs remained high.

“We were spending heavily on operations and contractors, but when you looked at the net position, we were leaking value,” he said.

Ojulari added that there was no clear roadmap to reverse the losses or transform the refineries into profitable ventures, prompting management to halt operations and undertake a comprehensive reassessment.

“As difficult as it was, the decision was to stop the refineries, reassess the situation and recalibrate. If the fundamentals were right, we would then consider reopening and restructuring operations,” he said.