NNPC Confirms Blending Petrol At Port Harcourt Refinery, Crashes Fuel Prices Further
- Mele Kyari, the group chief executive officer of NNPC, has said blending petrol at the newly refurbished Port Harcourt refinery is not a crime
- He said the process is necessary to avoid producing off-spec products that could damage vehicles
- He insisted that blending is part of the refining process, saying the Port Harcourt refinery is in full operation.
Legit.ng’s Pascal Oparada has reported on tech, energy, stocks, investment and the economy for over a decade.
The group chief executive officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), Mele Kyari, has said blending petroleum products at the refurbished Port Harcourt Refinery is not a crime.
The NNPC boss spoke at the commissioning of the NUPENG Towers in Lagos on Wednesday, saying the refinery is functional, with loading operations ongoing.
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Kyari reveals why the Port Harcourt refinery is blending
Legit.ng earlier reported that the refinery commenced operations after several years of hiatus.
The refinery also began loading petroleum products for distribution immediately after.
According to NNPC, the refinery started producing daily outputs of straight-run petrol called naphtha, blended into 1.4 million litres.
Many Nigerians have disclosed that the refinery was blending petrol, questioning the practice instead of refining crude oil.
However, Kyari disclosed that blending is not a crime but an integral part of refining.
TheCable reports that Kyari said blending is necessary to avoid coming out with off-spec products which could damage vehicles.
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Kyari invites Nigerians for a tour of refineries
He insisted that every refinery blends petrol because what is on the specification in the United States of America will be off-spec in Nigeria and other places.
The NNPC boss invited those doubting the refinery’s operations to tour the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries and verify their conditions.
He commended NUPENG on the successful completion of the Towers, asking the union to continue prioritising dialogue and cooperation in its relationship with state oil firm.
Oil workers predict new petrol prices
Legit.ng earlier reported that the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) said that prices of petroleum products would remain high despite the commencement of production by the Dangote and Port Harcourt Refineries.
Festus Osifo, president of PENGASSAN, said that the high exchange rate, currently over N1,600 per dollar, plays a key role in petroleum product prices. This has continued to impact commodity prices in Nigeria.
According to the PENGASSAN chief, these refineries will create jobs but will not significantly lower the prices of petroleum products, saying that the naira’s weakness is to blame.
