The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has announced that the 125,000-barrel-per-day Warri Refining & Petrochemicals Company (WRPC) in Warri, Delta State, is now operational.
The NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Mele Kyari, said during the tour of the refinery on Monday.
Addressing a tour team, which included the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Farouk Ahmed, Mr. Kyari said that the inspection was aimed at showing Nigerians the level of work completed so far.
He explained that although the repairs on the facility are not yet 100 per cent complete, operations have commenced.
“We are taking you through our plant. This plant is running. Although it is not 100 per cent complete, we are still in the process. Many people think these things are not real. They think real things are not possible in this country. We want you to see that this is real,” he said.
Commissioned in 1978 and managed by the NNPCL, the Warri Refinery also has the petrochemical plant that produces 13,000 metric tonnes per annum (MTA) of polypropylene and 18,000 MTA of carbon black.
Meanwhile, local media reports on Monday quoted the NNPCL spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye as saying that the mechanical completion of the facility was initially scheduled for the first quarter of 2024,
The Refinery is one of state-owned four refineries, alongside the old and new Port Harcourt Refining Company in Rivers State and the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company in Kaduna State.
GIK/APA
