The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, Engr. Bayo Ojulari, has said the corporation currently lacks the capacity to operate a refinery, describing the reoperationalisation of the Port Harcourt Refinery and Petrochemical Company as a major waste of resources.
Ojulari made the remarks on Wednesday while speaking at the ongoing 2026 Nigerian International Energy Summit, where he outlined the challenges facing government-owned refineries and NNPC’s new operational direction.
According to him, efficient refinery operations require strong financing, competent Engineering, Procurement and Construction contractors, as well as world-class operational and maintenance capacity, conditions he said NNPC does not presently possess.
The Port Harcourt Refinery, which was rehabilitated at a cost of about $1.5 billion under the leadership of former NNPC GCEO, Mele Kyari, was reopened in November 2024 after nearly three years of rehabilitation. However, the facility was shut down again in May 2025 after recording sustained financial losses.
Ojulari said a comprehensive review of the refinery’s operations showed that it was running at a significant loss to the country.
“The first thing that became clear was that we were running at a monumental loss to Nigeria. We were just wasting money. I can say that confidently now,” he said.
He explained that despite regular crude supply, the refinery operated at only about 50 to 55 per cent utilisation, resulting in the loss of the value of crude cargoes and heavy spending on operations and contractors without positive returns.
“We were pumping cargo into the refinery every month, but those cargoes have value, and we were losing that value. When you look at the net outcome, we were just leaking value, and there was no clarity on how to turn those losses into positive returns,” he said.
Ojulari said the decision to shut down the refinery was taken to halt further losses and allow the company to reassess viable options for the facility.
He disclosed that NNPC is now seeking reliable partners with proven experience in refinery management to operate Nigeria’s refineries, stressing that the company is no longer interested in contractors or operations and maintenance service providers.
“We are looking for an entity that actually runs refineries,” he said, adding that the strategy has been approved by the NNPC board.
Ojulari also noted that the successful operation of the Dangote Refinery has eased pressure on the Federal Government to rush decisions on reviving state-owned refineries.
“Thank God for Dangote Refinery. Whether you love Dangote or hate him, thank God he is a Nigerian. That gave us breathing space because we now have a refinery that is working,” he said.
On oil production, the NNPC chief expressed optimism that Nigeria could reach 1.8 million barrels per day in 2026 but described the Federal Government’s 2025 budget benchmark of 2.06 million barrels per day as overly ambitious, noting that average production last year stood at about 1.7 million barrels per day.
He warned that overprojection of oil output and revenue had contributed to Nigeria’s financial challenges in the past, stressing the need for realistic production planning to avoid future fiscal crises.
