Mele Kyari, Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, predicts that by next year, Nigeria will be a net exporter of petroleum products.
On Monday, during the PENGASSAN Energy and Labour Summit 2023 in Abuja, Kyari stated that Nigeria, as a resource-dependent country, should not export 100% of its crude as it now does.
“Today, we export 100 per cent of our productions, no resource-dependent country does this and that is why we must deliver on our mandate. I don’t want to speak about it; when it is done, you will see it,” Kyari said.
“So, I don’t want to tell you we are going to revamp our refineries. That is too much of PowerPoint talks. So, it will be done and you will see it. I don’t want to speak about it, we are tired of speaking about it.
“But what we must achieve is that this country must be a net exporter of petroleum products and this is within sight.”
“I strongly believe now, without giving you a date so that people don’t get angry again, but in 2024, this country will become a net exporter of petroleum products.”
According to him, this indicates that there would be enough Nigerians in the country and those who may leave.
However, the NNPC CEO made it plain that refining crude oil in the country would not necessarily lower the local price of gasoline, which he claimed was determined by international prices.
Government-owned refineries have been dormant for years, but the Federal Government has guaranteed Nigerians that some of them will reopen shortly as part of efforts to eliminate fuel importation into the country.
During an inspection tour of the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC) Ltd. plant in Port Harcourt, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, stated that the Port Harcourt refinery would be operational again by December.
In addition, the Dangote Refinery is slated to begin production soon, resulting in additional crude processed in the country.
During the commissioning of the 650,000 bpd refinery in Lagos State in May, the President of Dangote Industries Limited stated that production would begin between July and August of this year, but that has been delayed until an unspecified date.
“Government is putting money into this and NNPC is investing with partners and we believe in 2024 the revolution will become very manifest and people will become have access to cleaner and cheaper fuel in 2024.
“It’s already happening, number of buses has converted, a number of state governments have bought buses that are running on CNG. We are carrying out significant projects that will bring CNG into the market with our partners and we believe that this will work for our country,” Kyari added.
