Blending at Port Harcourt Refinery is no crime – NNPC
THE Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL, Mele Kyari, has said that blending during refining if petroleum products is no crime.
He also dismissed insinuations that Port Harcourt Refinery was not working, saying the refinery is producing not only petrol, but kerosene.
According to the GMD, works are going on in both Warri and Kaduna refineries and those in doubt can indicate interest to visit any f them.
Kyari spoke at the grand commissioning ceremony of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, 7-storey new national secretariat known as NUPENG Tower, in Lagos.
He said: “The repairs of Port Harcourt and other refineries are real. The Port Harcourt refinery is running. As we speak, the plant is running and loading is going on.
“I invite you to visit the Warri Refinery and Kaduna refineries or you can nominate any person of your choice to visit. Work is going. Port Harcourt is producing not only Petrol, but also kerosene. We will shock you with the other refineries. We will not give you a date (of resumption of production).”
Kyari also explained that the process of blending was part of the refining process, saying “Every refinery blend.
“There is no refinery where you open a tap and rinse out the gasoline so that it will not blend. There is no crime committed when you blend in a refinery. If we go the way it is done abroad, all your gas will go because of the environmental pressure.
“Requirements are different. Every refinery that mixes gasoline is a mixture of chemicals. There is no one chemical.”
The NNPC GMD was responding to comments by human rights activist and Lagos lawyers, Femi Falana SAN, who had earlier in his goodwill message challenged the leadership of NUPENG and its Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, to among others, tell Nigerian the true state of Port Harcourt refinery and others, saying there are too many controversies around them.
He urged the unions to open up and speak on the current state of the refineries, where the NNPCL had claimed that Nigeria had achieved 90 percent of 60,000bpd capacity.
He equally called on the two unions to work with others (organized Labour) to save Nigerians from the recruiting pains they are going through today
Commissioning the NUPENG Tower, President Bola Tinubu, called for a strengthening of relationship with the unions in the oil and gas sector for the benefit of Nigerians.
He noted that the success of the oil and gas sector should be measured according to the success of the unions for higher production and more revenue for the government.
Represented by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, Tinubu challenged NUPENG and PENGASSAN that they would be held accountable if the sector falters, urging them on a renewed commitment to grow the sector for the benefit of the country.
He, however, restated the Federal Government’s commitment to deepening the relationship with the unions in the sector and labour movement to achieve a win-win for all, including workers and the government.
Earlier, NUPENG’s President, Williams Akporeha, among others, called for a collaborative effort to ensure Nigeria’s energy future is sustainable, inclusive, and equitable for all Nigerians.
Noting that the road to a more sustainable, fair, and prosperous energy sector for Nigeria remained long, he, however, said with unity, dedication and shared vision, Nigeria could overcome any obstacle.
“NUPENG workers are the ones who keep the wheels of our energy sector turning, despite challenges and adversities. We are the men and women who ensure that the lights stay on, that the economy thrives, and that Nigeria’s place on the global energy stage remains secure.”
