The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) says it will begin full rehabilitation of the nations three refineries by January 2020. The nation’s refineries are located in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna. The Group Managing Director (GMD) Malam Mele Kyari disclosed this on Saturday in Port Harcourt during a facility tour to the Port Harcourt refinery. Kyari in a statement by Mr Ndu Ughamadu, the spokesman for the corporation noted that the move would help the corporation to refine crude oil at optimum capacity by 2022. He said that the visit to the refinery was part of his strong determination and commitment to ensure that the nation’s refineries deliver real time value and address the petroleum needs of Nigerians.

According to him, making the refineries to operate at optimal capacities is a mandate that NNPC as a corporation will leave no stone unturned to actualise, because a timely delivery of the asset is a priority. “We will stick to time, we will deliver this project by 2022. We will commence actual rehabilitation work in January. We will do everything possible between October and December to close out all necessary conditions for us to deliver on that project. I believe that with the support that we have from the shareholders – government of this country, the entire staff of this company and the contractors, I believe it is doable and we will deliver the project,” the GMD said.

He further tasked the contractors on the need to consider their reputation as most critical element in business processes and engagements. “It’s no longer about business now, but a reputation issue. For the original builders of the refinery, Tecmmont, Eni/NAOC and NNPC, let us be conscious of the fact that our reputation is at stake as far as this project is concerned. The NNPC leadership has promised this country that our refineries will work, therefore, we must work not to disappoint over 200 million Nigerian stakeholders,” Kyari added He also challenged the Port Harcourt refinery management to ensure that the nation’s indigenous engineers and other professionals working in the refinery were fully engaged to participate actively during the rehabilitation and own the process.

According to him, the involvement of the indigenous workers will build capacity, save cost and introduce an era of steady and uninterrupted production curve that will grow the oil and Gas Industry.

In his presentation on the progress and milestones on Phase 1 of the projects, the Tecmmont Project Manager, Mr. La Mattina Carmelo, said that the inspection aspect of the project had progressed to 91 per cent and Final Report and EPC Proposal stood at 75 per cent. He added that his company would deliver the first phase of the rehabilitation within three weeks from now. He also assured that there were no challenges as the project was progressing efficiently, pledging to offer its best services to ensure a timely delivery.

In the same vein, the project consulting company, Eni/NAOC, represented by the its project manager, Daniele Tamburini, confirmed that the work done so far by the NNPC and Tecmmont complied with global standard. Tamburini said his company was ready to receive the full report of the scoping for final assessment and support the corporation to deliver the project in record time, saying that the initiative was a good business for Nigeria. Earlier in his address, the Managing Director of the PHRC, Mr. Abba Bukar, expressed appreciation to the GMD for his deep commitment in ensuring that the refinery works for the benefit of Nigerians.