Portharcourt Refinery Test-run Ongoing as Marketers Project Fuel Price Hike

The the Federal Government, on Wednesday, said the Port Harcourt Refining Company is still being test-run, adding that refined petroleum products from the plant would hit the market soon.

It disclosed this at a briefing in Abuja, as oil marketers expressed worry that the recent crash of the naira against the United States dollar might lead to a hike in the pump prices of refined petroleum products.

They specifically wondered how the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited would continue to supply Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, at the current cost, because one dollar now equals about N1,450.

Meanwhile, speaking about the Port Harcourt refinery during an event in Abuja, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri, told journalists that the plant was still being test-run.

You will recall that on December 21, 2023, the Federal Government announced the mechanical completion of rehabilitation work on Area-5 Plant of the Port Harcourt Refining Company in Rivers State.

It also stated that the first phase of the plant had been completed, as the facility would start refining 60,000 barrels of crude oil after the Christmas break, however, this is yet to happen.

But when asked about the status of the facility on Wednesday, Lokpobiri explained that the mechanical aspect of the Port Harcourt refinery has been completed and they are still test-running.

He noted that with the summation of all these, Nigeria would be able to solve its energy needs and also supply refined products to West Africa.

On the cost of PMS, going by the crash of the naira against the dollar, the National Public Relations Officer, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, Chief Ukadike Chinedu, stated that the price of the commodity might rise.