Our Reporter, Abuja
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) has categorically dismissed speculations surrounding the sale of the Port Harcourt Refinery, stating it remains committed to the completion and retention of the facility as a core national asset.
Speaking at a company-wide town hall meeting held Tuesday at the NNPC Towers in Abuja, the Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Ojulari, stressed that the refinery is not for sale. He clarified that this position is not a policy reversal but the result of in-depth technical and financial reviews currently underway on the Port Harcourt, Kaduna, and Warri refineries.
Ojulari described previous plans to begin partial operations at the Port Harcourt refinery before completing its full rehabilitation as “ill-informed and sub-commercial,” noting that such a move would have risked undermining the plant’s long-term value.
“Although work is progressing across all three refineries, the evolving technical outlook makes it imperative to pursue more advanced partnerships for the high-grade rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt facility,” Ojulari said.
“Selling it at this stage would only result in further value erosion.”
His comments come amid growing speculation following his earlier remarks during the 2025 OPEC Seminar in Vienna, Austria, where he told Bloomberg that “all options are on the table” regarding Nigeria’s refining assets. That statement triggered media reports suggesting a potential sale of the refinery.
Ojulari’s latest clarification was met with resounding applause from hundreds of staff members present at the meeting, many of whom described the announcement as a reaffirmation of the company’s business-focused and patriotic direction.
The town hall also served as a strategic review session, with Executive Vice Presidents from various business units—including Upstream, Downstream, Finance, Business Services, Gas, Power, and New Energy—providing updates on operations, challenges, and progress. The event underscored the company’s evolving culture of transparency and accountability.
In a candid and forward-looking address, Ojulari acknowledged previous missteps while laying out a clear roadmap for achieving the corporation’s transformation agenda.
The reaffirmation of NNPC’s stance on the refinery aligns with the Federal Government’s broader energy security strategy and highlights the company’s role as a custodian of critical national infrastructure.
Employee reactions to the session were overwhelmingly positive. Feedback described the engagement as “reassuring,” “transformational,” and “a turning point,” with staff expressing optimism about the future direction of the company.
Ojulari also pledged that NNPC Ltd would continue to evolve into a commercially driven and professionally managed national energy champion—anchored on transparency, performance, and service to its foremost stakeholders: the Nigerian people.
