Oil & Energy

Confab Harps On Functional Refineries

Published

13 years ago

September 3, 2012

The First International Conference on Petroleum Refining and
Petrochemicals has harped on the need for more efficient refineries and
petrochemical plants in the country.

Giving a keynote address at the conference which was put
together by the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) and the Institute
of Petroleum Studies (IPS), UNIPORT in Port Harcourt last week, PTDF’s
executive secretary, Engr. Multapha Rabe Darma said the importance of
functional refineries and petrochemical plants to the socio-economic
transformation of the nation cannot be over-emphasised.

According to Engr. Darma, aside engaging qualified workforce
meaningfully, the two industries would serve as the fulcrum for the auto,
plastic, pharmaceutical, textile, real estate, ICT accessories among other
transformation in-country.

He added that the nation’s per capital income would have a triple
digit increase if these industries are made to function efficiently noting that
petroleum products and bye products which emanate from refineries and
petrochemical, majorly oil the wheels of development the world over.

Also, said that a
director in the Centre for Petroleum Refining and Petrochemicals IPS, and the
conference executive chairman Prof. Godwin Igwe, advocated the establishment of
modular refineries, which have the capability of producing 20 to 100 gallons of
refined products, in the 36 states of the federation if the country must move
from a net importer of refined products to a major net exporter.

“It is a shame for the Nigerian government to depend mostly
on imported fuel and still sell crude oil on daily basis. I feel ashamed seeing
Nigerians looking for fuel all over the country because of scarcity of
petroleum products,” he lamented.

He argued that with modular refineries, which are less
expensive, in place there would be enough petroleum products for domestic use
and export thus providing job for the teeming qualified Nigerians and end the
embarrassing situation of fuel importation in the country.

He noted that Nigeria has competitive advantage over other
countries because of the raw crude material it has.

He also advocated the need for energy bank in the country
that would support investors intending to venture into refining of crude oil
and other relative activities in the country.

The Group Executive
Director, Refining and Petrochemicals, Nigeiran National Petroleum Corporation
(NNPC)Engr. Tony Ogbuigwe, to meet the
challenge of the nation’s national daily consumption of petrol, kerosene and
automotive gas oil (AGO) and the West African Sub-region growing demand, the
country has to change the way it operated the refineries in the past.

“This offers the Nigerian downstream sector of the oil and
gas industry opportunity for innovation, investment in new refineries and hence
the need for transformation as envisaged in the Petroleum Industry Bill,” Engr.
Ogbuigwe pointed out.

Also stressing on the need for additional investment in
refineries in the country, the Executive Secretary of PPPRA, Mr. Reginald
Stanley, said the country needs efficient refining capacity to meet the
increasing domestic demand and for export.

Mr. Stanley explained that the current installed capacity of
the refineries can only produce 26 million litres of Petroleum Motor Spirit
(PMS), 17 million litres of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and 10 million litres of
Household kerosene (HHK) per day while the domestic demand for these products
are 40 million, 12 million and 10 million litres respectively.

He, therefore, argued that to close the huge gap in the
demand and supply of these products, there was need for additional investment
and noted “three additional Greenfield refineries (with a petrochemical plant)
with a total capacity of 300,000bpd for $23 billion have been proposed. Nigeria
is therefore, being positioned as the future hub of petroleum products supply
in the West African and Sub-Saharan region,” if implemented.

Vivian-Peace Nwinaene

Oil & Energy

NERC, OYSERC Partner To Strengthen Regulation

Published

5 days ago

February 23, 2026

The Tide

THE Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has stressed the need for strict adherence to due process in operationalizing state electricity regulatory bodies.

It, however, pledged institutional and technical support to the Oyo State Electricity Regulatory Commission (OYSERC).

The Chairman, NERC, Dr Musiliu Oseni, who made the position known while receiving the OYSERC delegation, emphasised that the establishment and take-off of state commissions must align fully with the law setting them up.

Oseni said that the NERC remains committed to partnering with State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERC) to guarantee their institutional stability, operational effectiveness and long-term success.

He insisted that regulatory coordination between federal and state institutions is critical in the evolving electricity market framework, noting that collaboration would help to build strong institutions capable of delivering sustainable outcomes for the sector.

Also speaking, the Acting Chairman, OYSERC and leader of the delegation, Prof. Dahud Kehinde Shangodoyin, said that the visit was aimed at formally introducing the commission’s acting leadership to the NERC and laying the groundwork for a productive working relationship.

Shangodoyin said , the acting members were appointed to provide direction and lay a solid foundation for the commission during its transitional period, pending the appointment of substantive members.

“We are here to formally introduce the acting leadership of OYSERC and to establish a working relationship with NERC as we commence our regulatory responsibilities,” he said.

He acknowledged NERC’s readiness to provide technical and regulatory support, particularly in the area of capacity development, describing the backing as essential for strengthening the commission’s operations at this formative stage.

“We appreciate NERC’s willingness to support us technically and regulatorily, especially in building our capacity during this transition,” he added.

Oil & Energy

NLC Faults FG’s 3trn Dept Payment To GenCos

Published

5 days ago

February 23, 2026

The Tide

The Nigeria Labour Congress and the Association of Power Generation Companies have engaged in a showdown over federal government legacy debt.

NLC president Joe Ajaero has faulted the federal government’s move to give GenCos N3 trillion from the Federation account as repayment for a power sector legacy debt, which amounts to N6.5 trillion.

In a statement on Thursday, Ajaero said the Federal Government proposed the N3 trillion payment and the N6 trillion debt as a heist and grand deception to shortchange the Nigerian people.

“Nigerians cannot and should not continue to pay for darkness,” Ajaero stated.

Meanwhile, the Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Power Generation Companies, APGC, Dr. Joy Ogaji, said Ajaero may be ignorant of the true state of things, insisting that the federal government is indebted to GenCos to the tune of N6.5 trillion.

She feared the longstanding conflict could result in the eventual collapse of the country’s power.

According to her, the federal government’s N501 billion issuance of power sector bonds is inadequate to address its accumulated debt.

Oil & Energy

PENGASSAN Rejects Presidential EO On Oil, Gas Revenue Remittance ……… Seeks PIA Review

Published

5 days ago

February 23, 2026

The Tide

The Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria(PENGASSAN) Festus Osifo, has faulted the public explanation surrounding the Federal Government’s recent oil revenue Executive Order(EO).

President of the association, Festus Osifo, argued that claims about a 30 per cent deduction from petroleum sharing contract revenue are misleading.

Recall that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, last Wednesday, February 18, signed the executive order directing that royalty oil, tax oil, profit oil, profit gas, and other revenues due to the Federation under production sharing, profit sharing, and risk service contracts be paid directly into the Federation Account.

The order also scrapped the 30 per cent Frontier Exploration Fund under the PIA and stopped the 30 per cent management fee on profit oil and profit gas retained by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

In his reaction, Osifo, while addressing journalists, in Lagos, Thursday, said the figure being referenced does not represent gross revenue accruing to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

He explained that revenues from production sharing contracts are subject to several deductions before arriving at what is classified as profit oil or profit gas.

Osifo also urged President Bola Tinubu to withdraw his recently signed Presidential Executive Order to Safeguard Federation Oil and Gas Revenues and Provide Regulatory Clarity, 2026.

He warned that the directive undermines the Petroleum Industry Act and could create uncertainty in the oil and gas industry, insisting that any amendment to the existing legal framework must pass through the National Assembly.

Osifo argued that an executive order cannot override a law enacted by the National Assembly, describing the move as setting a troubling precedent.

“Yes, that is what should be done from the beginning. You can review the laws of a land. There is no law that is perfect,” he said.

He added that the President should constitute a team to review the PIA, identify its strengths and weaknesses, and forward proposed amendments to lawmakers.

“When you get revenue from PSC, you have to make some deductibles. You deduct royalties. You deduct tax. You also deduct the cost of cost recovery. Once you have done that, you will now have what we call profit oil or profit gas. Then that is where you now deduct the 30 per cent,” he stated..

According to him, when the deductions are properly accounted for, the 30 per cent being referenced translates to about two per cent of total revenue from the production sharing contracts.

“In effect, that deduction is about two per cent of the revenue of the PLCs,” he added, maintaining that the explanation presented in the public domain did not accurately reflect the structure of the deductions.

Osifo warned that removing the affected portion of the revenue could have operational implications for NNPC Ltd, noting that the funds are used to meet salary obligations and other internal expenses.

“That two per cent is what NNPC uses to pay salaries and meet some of its obligations.The one you are also removing from the midstream and downstream, it is part of what they use in meeting their internal obligations. So as you are removing this, how are they going to pay salaries?” he queried.

Beyond the immediate impact on the company’s workforce, he cautioned that regulatory uncertainty could affect investor confidence in the sector.

“If the international community and investors lose confidence in Nigeria, it has a way of affecting investment. That should be the direction. You don’t put a cow before the horse,” he added.

According to him, stakeholders, including labour unions and industry operators, should be given the opportunity to make inputs at the National Assembly as part of the amendment process saying “That is how laws are refined,”