PortHarcourt refinery not for sale, rehabilitation to be completed soon – NNPCL’s Ojulari

‎‎The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Engr. Bayo Ojulari has said, the Port Harcourt refinery would not be sold, but its ongoing high grade rehabilitation and retention will be completed soon.

He stated this at a town hall meeting at the NNPCL meeting which took place at the NNPC Towers, Abuja.

The nationwide town hall meeting is to clear doubts, and end weeks of speculation over over the future of the country’s most prominent state-owned refining asset.

‎The statement said: “The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has officially ruled out the sale of the Port Harcourt Refining Company, reaffirming its commitment to completing high-grade rehabilitation and retention of the plant.”

‎Ojulari maintained that any plan to sell the refinery at this time was “ill-advised and sub-commercial,” hence, doing so will not be in the interest of the nation.

‎Ojulari’s remarks come amid rising public concern sparked by his earlier comments at the 2025 OPEC Seminar in Vienna, where he said “all options are on the table” regarding the future of Nigeria’s refineries.

The statement triggered a wave of speculation that a sale might be imminent.

‎He stated that the new position of the firm isn’t a shift. Rather, it is informed by ongoing detailed technical and financial reviews of the Port Harcourt, Kaduna and Warri refineries.