NNPC says Kaduna refinery is viable

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has debunked reports that the Federal Government is losing over N700bn annually in projected revenue through the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemicals Company, as well as N12bn on remuneration of idle workers because the plant is not currently functioning.

During an oversight visit to the refinery last week by the Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), the lawmakers were told that the 32-year old plant was a drain pipe.

However, the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, NNPC, Dr. Levi Ajuonuma, in a statement issued on Sunday, said KPRC was a functional and viable strategic business unit of the corporation, which was contributing immensely towards operations in the country’s oil and gas industry.

He said the refinery underwent a quasi turnaround maintenance two years ago by Nigerian engineers and that credit should be given to the engineers for running the refinery at 60 per cent of installed production capacity amid the challenge of incessant pipeline vandalism.

The NNPC spokesman affirmed that if not for pipeline vandals, the plant could run at 60 per cent to 70 per cent capacity utilisation on a sustained basis, adding that due to incessant pipeline vandalism, the desired production level had remained unsustainable.

Ajuonuma said, “Yes KRPC has a lot of challenges owing primarily to the neglect of the past. However, in the last several years, the fuel plant has operated steadily at 60 per cent throughput, translating to a daily production of 1.5 million litres of PMS, 1.4 million litres of AGO and 0.65 million litres of kerosene, in addition to other products.

“The biggest problem, however, is crude oil supply, which has become unreliable due to rampant pipeline breaks that on many occasions necessitated the shut down of the refinery.”

On the insinuation that a huge part of the plant had been converted to a container-making factory, he explained, “This is totally misleading. The fact is that Kaduna Refinery is the only plant among the nation’s refineries fitted with a tin and drum manufacturing section designed to package petroleum products for distribution to the rural areas.”

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