Billy Gillis-Harry, the national president of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria(PETROAN), has said that the Port Harcourt Refinery will begin commercial production in the coming weeks.
According to reports, the refinery is ready to produce petroleum products in commercial quantities.
Gillis-Harry clarified that the full launch of Port Harcourt Refinery and Dangote Refinery would end fuel queues in Nigeria.
“Port Harcourt Refinery is gearing up to be on stream to produce Petroleum in commercial quantity. We pray and hope that in the coming days or weeks, this comes to light. I went personally to the refinery. I saw efforts in place to ensure the refinery works”, he said.
Mele Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), predicted in July 2024 that the Port Harcourt refinery would begin operating in August this year.
NNPCL had previously stated that the refinery would commence operations in March and July 2024, following its mechanical completion in December of the previous year.
This follows the Nigerian government’s approval of $1.5 billion in 2021 for refurbishing the refinery.
Opeyemi Bamidele, the Chairman of the Senate Committee investigating alleged economic sabotage in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry, has recently called for an investigation into the $1.5 billion allocated for maintaining the Port Harcourt refinery.