Knocks, praise for FG on $1.5bn P’Harcourt refinery rehabilitation
By Doosuur Iwambe & Tom Okpe
Mixed reactions have continued to trail the approval of $1.5 billion by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for the rehabilitation of Port Harcourt Refinery.
Speaking during a telephone interview with the Daily Times on Sunday, experts criticised the latest move as another wasteful exercise saying they advised the government in the past to privatise the refineries to make them effective.
A oil industry expert, Mr Henry Adigun, who kicked against the move said what the country needed now was to have affordable petroleum motor spirit popularly referred to as petrol or fuel.
According to him, repairing a refinery at $1.5 billion is not a guarantee that the price of petrol will be affordable for all Nigerians.
He said: “Repairing a refinery for $1.5billion is not what the country needs now. It is not a guarantee that the price of petrol will be made affordable.
“One of the key issues we must consider now is the removal of subsidy, to ensure that the market is regulated so that people can bring in the products at any price. It might be cheaper to bring it from abroad than produce in Nigeria.
“Why invest the money you do not have on what you don’t need? What will it change? The refinery that will not change the cost of our need, why spend that much on it.
“On what basis was the evaluation and costing done, why port Harcourt refinery when we have Warri and Kaduna. What is the guarantee that it is not just a political move that will not bring any gain to the country.
There are a lot of questions begging for answers. “It is just a waste of resources.” On his part, an analyst, Architect Cletus Aver, who also condemned the development, said: This administration is not sincere.
They do not have the good intention of the country at heart. The move is another way of diverting money and putting a tag on it.” Questioning the rationale for approving such a huge amount, he wondered if there was any evaluation done and by who before arriving at such.
Also, an Abuja-based lawyer and public commentator, Akpan Nkereuwem said: “Government’s efforts at putting the PH refinery in working position is commendable, but clearly the budgeted amount is way above the industry average even for bigger refineries.
I think this is unacceptable and there’s need for government to rethink and reevaluate the award.” But the Petroleum Products Pricing and Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) commended the move saying, it will bring down the cost of fuel.
The PPPRA general manager, Cooperate Services, Mr Kimchi Apollo, said “ it will bring refinery back to life.
It will bring down the cost of fuel.” Also, a political pressure group, Buhari Media Organisation (BMO) dismissed former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s comments on the planned rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt refinery describing it as an attentiongrabbing ruse.
The group also said Nigerians believes in President Buhari’s judgement more than Atiku’s self-serving economic advisory. BMO, through its chairman, Niyi Akinsiju in Abuja on Sunday, questioned Atiku’s expertise on economic policy, describing his position against allocating funds for the Port Harcourt refinery’s rehabilitation by the Buhari Administration as ‘pitifully onedimensional.’
Alhaji Atiku Abubakar had described the is better outside the nation than inside as one united Nigeria.
He remarked: “Insecurity is giving the northern region a bad name and image and the need to make the North peaceful again cannot be overemphasized.
“Boko Haram, banditry, kidnapping have threatened the peace and tranquillity needed for educational development in our land.
“Insecurity in any nation threatens development, law and order. Insecurity must be ruthlessly dealt with collectively to pave way for the development of the education sector and development.”
Gowon stressed the need for the nation to be united, saying any attempt to scrap the powers of local governments should be rejected. On the anniversary he said: “Barewa College has produced leaders in all facets of life.
Barewa College alumnus has been working together for the development of the North and Nigeria. “The Federal Government and 19 northern states governors support the school and its sister colleges.
“Although the school has also suffered neglect, with a change of leadership it is gradually improving and more hard work is required to sustain the momentum.”
He also advised BOBA to be more concerned about the future of the northern states as the region remains poor according to WHO indices. rehabilitation of the Port Harcoury refinery as ‘suspicious’ of the President Muhammadu Buhari led administration.
The pressure group however, in its reaction said describing the Port Harcourt refinery’s planned rehabilitation as ‘suspicious’ indicates that the former Vice President has not yet grasped the big picture dimensions in macro-economic policy, preferring a cut and paste approach.
“It is Atiku’s privatisation advocacy that Nigerians find suspicious. We have not forgotten how under his watch in 2007 this same refinery was sold off at a highly undervalued price of $561million.
It was President Yar’Adua’s better judgement that reversed the sale. “The Port Harcourt refinery is a national asset with undeniable economic and national strategic value.
It was primarily built to boost the nation’s petrochemical production and supply capacity and create a downstream value chain that will trigger economic development and increase national wealth.
One can be as sentimental as one pleases, but we cannot divorce a project of that magnitude from the larger narrative of the nation’s chequered industrial history. This is the right time to put things in order.
“The $1.5billion investment in the Port Harcourt refinery is a lot of money, but it will be money well-spent. This is a thoughtful and serious-minded government that enjoys popular support because it has a track record for transparency and accountability.
“The declared intention of the Buhari administration is to transform the hemorrhaging asset into an active production hive.
It will be money well invested. By sheer size, outlay and product line, the Port Harcourt refinery can become a gamechanger after rehabilitation,” Akinsiju said.
The Federal Executive Council (FEC) had on Wednesday approved the sum of $1.5 billion for the rehabilitation of the refinery in Rivers State.
Timipre Sylva, Minister of State For Petroleum, said the rehabilitation will be done in three phases of 18, 24 and 44 months. He said the contract will be awarded to Tecnimont SPA, an Italian company.
Sylva said the funding has three components from Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) internally generated revenue (IGR), Afreximbank and budgetary provisions.
“The Ministry of Petroleum Resources presented a memo on the rehabilitation of Port Harcourt refinery for the sum of 1.5 billion, and that memo was $1.5 billion and it was approved by council today,” he said.
“So we are happy to announce that the rehabilitation of productivity refinery will commence in three phases.
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The first phase is to be completed in 18 months, which will take the refinery to a production of 90 percent of its nameplate capacity.
“The second phase is to be completed in 24 months and all the final stage will be completed in 44 months and consultations are approved.
“And I believe that this is good news for Nigeria.” Sylva said discussions are in progress for the rehabilitation of other refineries, noting that “before the lifetime of this administration expires, work on all the refineries would have at least commenced”.
“As you know, there is a local content law. The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) is fully part of the contracting process and has safeguarded the interest, adequately of our local contractors, so our local people will be fully involved with the Tecnimont spa,” he said.
However, Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike and one time Central Bank of Nigeria (CBND) Deputy Governor Obadiah Mailafia, the Peoples Democratic Party were not excited about the development.
