By Chinasaokwu Helen okoro
The Senate has questioned the $1.5bn approved in 2021 for the turn-around maintenance of the Port Harcourt Refining and Petrochemical Company with little or no result.
It also vowed to probe allegations of sabotage to the supply of crude oil to domestic refineries, as the National Assembly invited officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Dangote Petroleum Refinery, among others, for the probe.
It raised this concern amid the pervasive allegations of sabotage in the petroleum industry by major players in the sector.
The upper chamber lamented that it was wrong to treat government businesses or public companies as orphans while private businesses were flourishing and thriving.
The Leader of the Senate and Chairman of the Senate Ad-hoc Committee to Investigate the Alleged Economic Sabotage in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, raised the questions at a session with stakeholders in the industry at the National Assembly Complex, Abuja on Wednesday.
The session was attended by Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun; Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, Melee Kyari; Chief Executive, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Mr Gbenga Komolafe; and Chief Executive Office, Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Mr Farouk Ahmed, among others.
The Federal Executive Council had approved the plan by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources to rehabilitate and turn around the Port Harcourt refinery with a sum of $1.5bn under the administration of former president Muhammad Buhari.
Despite the huge investment, the government-owned refinery is yet to function effectively, a situation that has made the country depend almost entirely on the importation of refined petroleum products.
At the session with stakeholders on Wednesday, Bamidele expressed grave concerns about the dysfunctionality of the government-owned refineries despite billions of dollars invested to carry out turn-around maintenance on the installation.
Bamidele observed that the federation “is undergoing a truly challenging period,” pointing out that the distribution and supply of refined petroleum products “has been irregular and problematic in the recent history of our fatherland.”
“The long queues at filling stations are obviously a testament to this challenge. A situation, whereby we now depend almost entirely on the importation of these products. Even when we daily supply the global oil market no fewer than two per cent of its crude oil requirements, is, to say the least, highly worrisome.
“We also have at hand a grievous issue of national concern that directly borders on the importation of hazardous petroleum products and dumping of substandard diesel into the country.”
Under different administrations since 1999, Bamidele observed that the Federal Government “has invested billions of dollars to maintain and turn around the state-owned refineries in Kaduna, Port Harcourt and Warri. But the refineries are not functioning.”
He stressed that “in 2021, specifically, the Federal Executive Council approved $1.5bn for the turn-around maintenance of the Port Harcourt refinery. Yet, this investment has not yielded significant returns.
For us, in the Senate, we believe, it is unfair and unpatriotic to treat government businesses or public corporations as an orphan while private businesses are flourishing and thriving.”
To permanently nip these challenges in the bud, the chairman of the ad-hoc committee disclosed the plan of the Senate to jointly conduct an investigation into diverse allegations of economic sabotage in the petroleum industry along with the House of Representatives.
Bamidele noted that there would be no room for grandstanding during the investigative hearing, promising that the committee would carry out its mandate fairly and impartially.
While insisting that nobody will be untouchable, Bamidele said the task of ridding the petroleum industry of malfeasance “is urgent and must be carried out in the spirit of nationalism and patriotism. We are ready to carry it out with all sense of honour and responsibility.
“We are also taking it seriously to address fundamental issues that pose grave threats to our economic prosperity, fiscal stability, and public health as a federation. In line with our mandate, we will unravel factors and forces aiding sabotage in our petroleum industry.
“From our findings, we will craft a legislative framework that will entrench global best practices in the industry; open it up for more investments, especially in the midstream and downstream sectors, and end vicious regimes of subterfuge in the petroleum industry.
“We are utterly committed to this mandate. We shall carry it out without fear or favour. We shall be equitable, fair, and just to all parties to promote and protect the strategic national interests of our fatherland,” Bamidele said.He, therefore, promised that the National Assembly “is ready to carry out the investigative hearing with all sense of honor and responsibility,” citing the impeccable professional backgrounds of members of the committee.
Also, at the session, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, and some other stakeholders declared that they should be counted out of any act of economic sabotage in the sector.
In his remarks, the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC, Mele Kyari, said the company owned by over 200 million Nigerians should be counted out of any act of sabotage.Kyari said, “We are faithful, loyal, and committed to the greatness of this country. We are not criminals, thieves or saboteurs as being alleged through wrong narratives.
“NNPC under our management and by operational guidelines or relevant provisions of PIA, CAMA, etc, is today a profit-making company after about 43 years of losses.
“Today from 1.4 million barrels it was months back, oil production level has increased to 1.65 million barrels per day and will soon hit the expected two million barrels per day.”He added, “There is nothing for NNPC to sabotage because we are out to maximise value and profit for the country. We are not against any domestic refinery because the laws are clear as far as processes and procedures are concerned.
As requested by the Minister of State for Petroleum, the planned public hearing on alleged sabotage in the sector should be televised live for Nigerians to know the truth of situations on ground.
”Similarly, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said a lot of misinformation has been churned out to the public on roles being played by his ministry and other agencies in making it inclusive for interested investors.
The planned public hearing by the committee, according to him, would afford Nigerians the opportunity to know the truth in the sector.Lokpobiri said, “Please do us a favour by televising the planned investigative hearing on the alleged economic sabotage in the petroleum industry live.
”Similarly, the Chief Executive Officer of NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, in his brief remarks said the planned public hearing should be televised live for Nigerians to know those indulging in the alleged economic sabotage in the sector.Ahmed stated, “A lot of negative stories and narratives have been written and published against us in NMDPRA on how we are carrying out our regulatory functions without us telling our own story.“Gratifyingly, the planned public hearing will give us the appropriate platform of laying our facts bare to Nigerians for them to know who is sabotaging who.
The investigation should be public and televised live.”In his presentation, the Group Chief Strategy Officer of the Dangote refinery, Aliyu Sulaiman, stated that out of the five million barrels of crude oil they got in recent time, NNPC gave them 60 per cent, 20 per cent was imported, and 20 per cent was purchased.He commended NNPC for making the huge supply to Dangote but described the refinery as a baby that should be supported by all relevant stakeholders in order to grow and not die.However, during his presentation, a subtle attack was made against Dangote by the National Chairman of Depots and Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Abdulkabir Aliyu, who said Dangote declared N133bn profit on sugar sales in Nigeria within the last six months.
He said such a feat was made possible for Dangote by allowing him to monopolise the sugar business in Nigeria.The petroleum sector, he added, should not be allowed to be monopolised by any person or company, saying “Monopoly kills business.
”Similarly, the National President of Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Abubakar Maigandi, in his presentation, loudly admonished the committee against monopoly in the petroleum sector.He said, “The current value chain in the downstream should be sustained to allow other investors to participate.
NNPC is doing its best but should please improve on the supply of products to retail outlets across the country to end the incessant queues at filling stations.”In his remarks, Edun said the increase in crude oil production would stabilise the country’s foreign exchange market while expressing confidence in the leadership of the ad-hoc committee to conduct an unbiased and impartial investigation.
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