By Kamil Opeyemi

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, has said the ongoing rehabilitation project at the Kaduna Refinery and Petrochemicals Company Limited, KRPC, be completed at the end of next year.

A statement by the NNPC quoted the Minister as stating this during an inspection tour of Kaduna Refinery & Petrochemicals during which he assessed the progress of work on the ongoing quick-fix project of the Refinery in Kaduna on Saturday.

Lokpobiri said he is confident that the refinery will be restreamed by the end of 2024, considering the “significant level of progress” he has witnessed on the tour.

The Minister, who observed that he would continue to hold key players involved in the rehabilitation process of the nation’s refineries accountable, also pledged Federal Government support in ensuring the timely delivery of the project.

According to the Minister, there is an urgent need to get the refinery back on stream for the nation’s economic prosperity and energy security, which are both paths to sustainable development.

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Earlier in his remarks, the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd., Mele Kyari, reassured the Minister that the fuel plant at the refinery will be delivered by the end of 2024.

Kyari said that all hands are on deck to bring the refinery back on stream, stressing that the contractor has since mobilized to the site and the needed equipment for the quick-fix activities is already in place.

“We are very confident that we will get the appropriate financing to get to the end of it, and ultimately, we will start to deliver value to Nigerians again. We plan the quick fix for 60,000 barrels per day so that we can start making money from this plant and we can continue the other part of the refinery to bring it up to its full-fledged capacity.

This will also tally with the completion of the Build, Operate, and Transfer (BOT) on the pipeline so as to have a reliable pipeline delivery infrastructure,” the GCEO stated.

The inspection tour, which was preceded by the 14th Refineries Rehabilitation Steering Committee Meeting, also had in attendance NNPC Limited’s Executive Vice President, Downstream, Adedapo Segun; Executive Vice President, Upstream, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan; Managing Directors of the three refineries; and a host of other members of the Committee.