The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, on Saturday said the Federal Government had begun a comprehensive rehabilitation of the country’s moribund refineries starting in Nigeria, with the Port Harcourt refinery.
The next target under the programme, according to Sylva, is the rehabilitation of the Warri and Kaduna refineries, respectively.
Announcing this in an address at the 2021 convocation of the Petroleum Training Institute, Effurun, Delta State, the minister said the exercise was in response to “a recent approval given by the Federal Executive Council for the comprehensive rehabilitation of all the refineries in Nigeria.”
Sylva, who was represented at the ceremony by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Dr Nasir Gwarzo, disclosed that “the ministry is putting all concerted efforts to meeting the current OPEC quota.”
According to him, the Federal Government seriously working towards meeting the mandate to increase crude oil production in the country to three million barrels per day.
“Today, we are producing about 1.3 million barrels per day,” the minister stated.
On the recent passage of the Petroleum Industry Act, the minister described the Act as “a watershed moment for Nigeria.”
He said, “The Act provides legal, governance and fiscal framework for the Nigerian petroleum industry, the development of host communities and other related matters. The President has also approved the constitution of a screening committee to oversee the process of implementation of the PIA. The primary responsibility of the screening committee shall be to guide the effective and timely implementation of the PIA.
