Sidebar

Exclusive Reports

28
Thu, Mar

FEC Approves $1.5bn For Rehabilitation Of Port Harcourt Refinery

Top Stories
Typography
  • Smaller Small Medium Big Bigger
  • Default Helvetica Segoe Georgia Times

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the sum of $1.5 billion for the rehabilitation of Port Harcourt Refinery in Rivers state. According to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva who made this known when he briefed State House correspondents at the 38th virtual FEC meeting, the rehabilitation will be done in three phases of 18, 24 and 44 months.

The Minister stated that the contract has been awarded to an Italian company, Tecnimont SPA who would undertake the repairs, a maintenance company would also be put in place, to ensure effective maintenance culture as this has been the downside of refineries within the country.

Mr Sylva added that the funding has three components from Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) internally generated revenue (IGR), Afreximbank and budgetary provisions. “The Ministry of Petroleum Resources presented a memo on the rehabilitation of Port Harcourt refinery for the sum of 1.5 billion, and that memo was $1.5 billion and it was approved by council today,” he said.

“So we are happy to announce that the rehabilitation of productivity refinery will commence in three phases. The first phase is to be completed in 18 months, which will take the refinery to a production of 90 per cent of its nameplate capacity.

“The second phase is to be completed in 24 months and all the final stage will be completed in 44 months and consultations are approved.

“And I believe that this is good news for Nigeria.”

The minister assured that rehabilitation works on Kaduna, Warri and other refineries would also be carried out, noting that “before the lifetime of this administration expires, work on all the refineries would have at least commenced”.

“As you know, there is a local content law. The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) is fully part of the contracting process and has safeguarded the interest, adequately of our local contractors, so our local people will be fully involved with the Tecnimont spa,” he said.

BLOG COMMENTS POWERED BY DISQUS