Timothy Mgbere, Secretary of the Alesa community stakeholders, has raised concerns about recent claims by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) regarding the revival of the Port Harcourt Refinery.
Speaking on Arise TV on Thursday, Mgbere alleged that the petroleum products reportedly loaded from the refinery were not newly refined but instead consisted of stock that had been sitting in the facility’s storage tanks for over three years.
According to Mgbere, the NNPCL misled Nigerians with statements about the refinery’s operations. He disputed the company’s claims of processing 1.4 million barrels of crude per day, asserting that only six trucks of petroleum products were loaded on Tuesday, contrary to reports suggesting a daily output sufficient to fill 200 trucks.
“I’ll credit them for making some progress, but to claim they are producing 1.4 million barrels per day, as stated by the Head of Corporate Communications, Femi Soneye, is simply untrue,” Mgbere said. “The refinery released old stock from its storage facility, which has been there for over three years, and televised it as new production. This is misleading.”
Mgbere criticized NNPCL for disseminating what he described as inaccurate information, urging the agency to maintain transparency as it holds the oil sector in trust for Nigerians.
Earlier this week, NNPCL had announced the commencement of petroleum production at the Port Harcourt Refinery and began trucking out products. Presidential spokesperson Sunday Dare added that 200 trucks were ready to load products from the refinery. However, Mgbere’s statements challenge these assertions, casting doubt on the scale and authenticity of the refinery’s operations.
The situation underscores the need for clarity on the refinery’s activities, especially as Nigerians anticipate tangible outcomes from the facility’s long-delayed revival.
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