From DENNIS MERNYI, Abuja
The Federal government has announced plans to increase the local production capacity of refined crude at the nation’s three refineries located in Kaduna, Warri and Port Harcourt to about 90 per cent of installed capacity by 2014, minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, has said.
The minister who disclosed this at a meeting convened by the Senate Committee on Petroleum (Downstream) to find solutions to the shortage of petroleum products in some parts of the country caused by distribution challenges, explained that the planned Turn-Around Maintenance and upgrade of the three refineries could not hold as earlier scheduled because of the negative travel advisory given by the Japanese authorities to JGC, the original builders of the Port Harcourt Refinery which stopped them from coming for the upgrade and maintenance of the refinery.
“With that hurdle surmounted, we have put in place a new plan complete with new schedules and timelines to bring the refineries back to life and get them to run at higher capacity. The maintenance and upgrade work will start with the Port Harcourt Refinery, which has stayed the longest period without a turn-around maintenance,” she explained.
Alison-Madueke further stated that the contract for the project will soon be signed and that rehabilitation and upgrade work will move from the Port Harcourt Refinery to the Kaduna and Warri Refineries in that order until the last one “comes on stream by the beginning of the last quarter of 2014”.
Asked by the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Magnus Abe, to shed light on the cost implication of the project and the expected production figure at the end of the rehabilitation work, the minister put the cost of the maintenance and upgrade of the three refineries at $1.6 billion, adding that the refineries would produce at 90 per cent installed capacity.
On the fuel supply challenges, she explained that a mixture of factors ranging from unsettled subsidy claims which hamstrung some private product marketers from importing products and the breakage of the System 2B Pipeline at Arepo have made supply and distribution of products across the country difficult in spite of intervention through supplies from the strategic reserve.
She said the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), which is charged with the responsibility of monitoring and enforcement has been going round the country to ensure that marketers sell products at the approved price of N97 per litre and has closed 75 stations caught selling above the approved price across the country.
SIGN THE BRASS LNG FID.
Talking talking no action
Is this dame plain dumb or something? Is she going to refine the crude on the cookers in her kitchen? Where are the refineries? Can she build one in 12 months? Goodness!
I think the government should take over the breweries, modify and convert them to petrochemical plants. The will serve a better purpose that way. The brewery investors have nothing to lose as it would even increase their profit we can do without beer but we cant do without the petrochemical products for our vehicles and other industries.
Good talk. What happened to the N8Billion set aside for the turn around maintenance of the same 3 refineries under Obasanjo Government? We heard that the money was used to build a refinery in another Country by Obasanjo and Emeka Offor. Have we forgotten that money and another tax payer’s money will be taken to pay for another turn around. Nobody is asking questions. What is the job of the National Assembly? I weep for this Country.
What we need is immediate action not empty promises abeg!!!
Na wa for Madam Minister! We’re yet to see the presence of DPR in Ikorodu area of Lagos State as all the petrol stations therein sells at the rate of N110 and N120 per litre. Please direct your DPR to visit Ikorodu axis, the untold hardship of this exorbitant prices is telling on the people. We’re tired of all these long stories on the pages of our dailies.
Don’t mind her, she can make empty promise, does she think she will still remain in the office till 2014 thief
What happened to all the turn-around maintenance done by OBJ regime? Wow! All the money used for that have gone into the drain.
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Just like that……
Fuel is selln for 115 naira every where what kind of country is ths
It is painful
I feel all your good ideas but what happened to all the states where fuel is being sold at 110 naira per liter with a measurement of 0.95 as a liter where there is no state task force enforcing accurate sales and measurements, no efforts at all from state government even when they are the major approvals of subsidy removal. it is very unfortunate. God bless Nigeria.
Nigerians are tried of all these promises we need action on ground to prove government right.
It apears to me that this people are just playing with us. Some body will just wake up, frame a story and publish it in the media only for us to believe him or her. All these empty promises, we have heard enough of them, even from the prevors administrations. So Mrs Madueke if want to us to believe you, you better start the maintenance now. No mater the reasons you are giving, i must tell you the truth first quater of 2014 is two far (three much and half.)
Brothers this our petroleum matter is something else, but i think if they will act not bla! bla! bla! like we have been hearing it will favor us a lot cos transporting this crude out to refine and bring them back is causing the distribution shortage and economic drop it will add more to our economy.
A lot will be stolen and sold maybe 40% of 100 will come back. Please we should use our local banks in international market not HSBC and CITI
@Berchman….you got it all right bro
This country nawa ooo.
So, upon all the promises made before the removal of oil subsidy,it,s still business as usual. #97.00 per litter still the government of my beloved country cannot ensure an uninterrupted supply of the commodity to the citizens,what a shame. My advise to Mr president, is to please resign instead.
If after more than 20yrs. of operation we still wait on Japan to come and do maintenance work for us, I surgest that all engineers working there must be sacked for not “stealing” the maint. tech. including Japan “technical team” for not “hiding” their knowledge. Sure Japan will not wait on any nation for that period without re-designing the plant to their pocket.
i wonder why nobody goes to anambra state.Pump prize is 120 naira per is there no monitoring team out there
It is unfortunate that all what we get are promises. We need actions and results now.
Madam Minister, enough of empty promises, you should talk to you Boy friend that things are not done properly in your Ministry or you get your ass out of that place.
Why 2014? Why not now? imagine these idiots promising us like babies, are you sure you will see the light of tomorrow? Do you have an idea how many people will die before 2014? Na that one make we siddon dey wait for? Are you going to sell petrol for 10naira in 2014? Better start praying to God than making silly promises. Ignoramus!
This people are liars,they should just get of that place and let serious-minded people come in.We are tired of their stories
no be una fault na my fellow nigerians wey vote una in, if buhari had won the election i know we wouldn’t be listening to cock and bull stories in this country, after chopulating N8 billion under obasanjo now they are targetting another N250 billion i happy for my country O! I am from the south east But i know my people only buhari can deliver us from these ingrates now!!!
Pitiful. You people think the rest of Nigerians are dummies. There are people who know way more than you dubious characters. Knowing that the refinery business is not that profitable, why cant you people give incentives and permits to private investors? Use a fraction of the “subsidy” bonanza to build more refineries covering the six geopolitical zones. Nigeria will be exporting refined fuel plus 13 other products from Nigeria crude. You create about 3 million jobs for the youths. So stop spreading that cow manure.
Wat a nice paper presentation by Alison bt d trut is we ve heard dat lots of time n no ourtcome. I hope dis is nt her own formular to embezzle public fund?
Did I see or read about Arepo as a constraint to petroleum product disribution when the killers of the Engineer and his crew members that tried to fix the line are still walkig freely without fear about?
1.6billion dollars wow! that is over 250billion naira and over 5% of the 2013 budget. who is deceiving who?
2014 is too long but let’s give it a try. It is better than not making a move. Let all hands be on deck, EFCC, ICPC, POLICE, MINISTRY OF PETROLEUM, FGN & YOU.
Also regarding the current selling price of petrol, in Akwa Ibom it is N120.00 so where has the department of petroleum resources done their work? I hope they don’t believe that Nigeria stops at Lagos, Abuja, Kaduna, Kano, Portharcourt and Benin!