Port Harcourt Refinery Halts Operations Again, Weeks After $1.5 Billion Rehabilitation

Port Harcourt Refinery has ceased operations barely a month after resuming production.

During a visit to the facility on Thursday, December 19, 2024, it was observed that the loading of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, had stopped.

According to Punch, the loading of petrol was last carried out on Friday, December 13, leaving the refinery’s 18-arm loading bay completely idle.

While a few trucks were seen parked along the road leading to the refinery, the usually bustling depot was eerily quiet, with little to no human or vehicular activity.

$1.5 Billion Rehabilitation and Launch

The refinery, boasting a 60,000-barrel-per-day capacity, was officially reopened on November 26, 2024, by Mele Kyari, CEO of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC).

The rehabilitation project, which began in March 2021, cost $1.5 billion and was celebrated with great fanfare during its relaunch.

During the reopening ceremony, a few trucks were loaded with petrol, though initial claims suggested over 200 trucks had lifted products.

However, stakeholders later alleged that the petrol lifted on that day came from old stock stored at the facility.

Temporary Resumption of Loading

After the relaunch, activities at the refinery dwindled. Three weeks ago, the depot was found deserted, with no products being lifted.

The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria attributed the downtime to meter calibration and the removal of old stock to make way for newly refined products.

A brief resurgence in activity occurred two weeks ago, with about 11 trucks loaded on one day, and slightly more the next.

However, by Thursday, December 19, operations had halted again, leaving truck drivers idle and uncertain.

One driver reported that loading might resume on Monday, December 23, but expressed skepticism.

Another driver stated that no clear explanation had been given for the stoppage, and many trucks had already left the depot.

Allegations of Mismanagement

Critics, including a petroleum marketer, Dappa Jubobaraye have expressed frustration with the state of the refinery.

Jubobaraye alleged that the reopening was merely a show to create the impression of progress, pointing out that only a few trucks were loaded during the inauguration.

He further claimed that of the 18 loading arms at the facility, only three were operational, and even those had leakages.

The petroleum marketer argued that the refinery has not been functioning as intended, accusing the NNPC of prioritizing appearances over genuine production.

He stated, “It was intended to deceive Nigerians that the refinery is working and that is why they came up with that show. That day, only about four or five trucks loaded products.

“The loading meter was not calibrated yet before they started operation. Of the 18 loading arms at the bay only three are working and they have leakages. So, they have been trying to load three, four, five trucks, sometimes 10 just to show that they are working while they are not working.

“Since Mele Kyari came and left, the independent marketers have yet to load products from this depot because the NNPC is yet to fix prices for them to buy tickets and start loading products. They are only loading them to their own mega stations.

“The situation right now is that loading of PMS is not taking place because they don’t have the intention to make this place work. It is just to deceive the people.

“If you come into this place (depot), you will see trucks packed and think that loading is on; but the truth is that they are not working. Some tanker drivers have gone because they can’t come and waste time here.”

Jubobaraye stated. “How can you come here with the hope of loading and you stay here with your truck for two weeks, for what? Before the work stopped last week, they were loading up to 10, 15 but below 20.

“Ordinary one of the arms in the loading bay can load up to 20 to 30 trucks in a day. But for now, they are using only three arms out of the 18 loading arms inside the bay and the three are just for PMS alone. They have not started loading DPK (kerosene) and AGO (diesel). And kerosene is what concerns the ordinary more.”

Efforts to contact NNPC spokesperson Femi Soneye for comments were unsuccessful, as calls and messages went unanswered at the time of this report.

This comes weeks after the NNPC announced that Port Harcourt Refinery had started producing fuel, claiming that trucks started loading on November 26.