Follow Us on Google
The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) has urged President Bola Tinubu to direct the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) to urgently restart the nation’s state-owned refineries before the January election period.
The association made the call in reaction to President Tinubu’s Independence Day broadcast on Thursday to mark Nigeria’s 66th anniversary.
In a statement jointly signed by its Special Adviser on Media, Chris Odia, and National Public Relations Officer, Joseph Obele, PETROAN said reviving the refineries would put the nation’s existing assets back to productive use for the benefit of Nigerians.
PETROAN President Billy Gillis-Harry said the refineries’ prolonged inactivity had affected businesses, workers, contractors, transport operators, and communities whose livelihoods depend on the petroleum value chain.
“Returning the refineries to productive operation would increase domestic refining capacity, strengthen energy security, create economic opportunities and make better use of Nigeria’s existing national assets,” he said.
Gillis-Harry said the revival of the refineries was not merely about restoring their operations, but also about ensuring that national assets delivered tangible benefits to Nigerians.
“This is not simply about restarting refineries. It is about putting national assets back to work for Nigerians,” he added.
According to him, increased domestic refining capacity, alongside privately owned refineries, could create a more competitive downstream market, encourage efficiency and improve petroleum product availability.
He said greater domestic refining could also put downward pressure on petroleum product prices, although prices would continue to be influenced by crude oil supply costs, exchange rates, taxes and logistics.
The PETROAN president stressed that the revival of the refineries must be supported by reliable crude oil supply, efficient operations and effective distribution of petroleum products.
Other News
“Nigerians want to see the benefits of our natural resources in their businesses, their jobs, their transportation costs and their everyday lives. A functioning domestic refining sector can be an important part of achieving that,” he said.
The association called for stronger cooperation among the Federal Government, NNPC Ltd, regulators, refinery operators, marketers and other stakeholders to ensure the successful revival of the facilities.
PETROAN said it remained committed to supporting policies aimed at promoting energy security, strengthening domestic refining, improving petroleum product distribution and encouraging investment in the oil and gas sector.
Nigeria’s four government-owned refineries have a combined installed capacity of 445,000 barrels per day, comprising 210,000 bpd from the Port Harcourt facilities, 110,000 bpd from Kaduna and 125,000 bpd from Warri.
Despite the huge installed capacity, the refineries have struggled with prolonged shutdowns and repeated rehabilitation efforts under successive administrations, with the Federal Government seeking to restore them as part of efforts to strengthen domestic fuel supply.
The Warri Refinery, which returned to operation in December 2024, was subsequently shut down in January 2025 following safety concerns. The Port Harcourt Refinery also experienced another disruption after NNPC Ltd announced an outage in May 2025 to allow for scheduled maintenance.
The repeated setbacks have kept the rehabilitation and sustained operation of the state-owned facilities at the centre of debates over Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector and its dependence on imported products.
PETROAN therefore urged the government and other industry stakeholders to ensure that the latest efforts to restore the refineries are sustained, arguing that functional government-owned plants, alongside private refineries, would strengthen competition and improve the resilience of the country’s petroleum supply chain.
