The new year started on a good note for Nigerians.
Indeed, the announcement of a successful revamp of one the country’s refinery in Warri, the Delta State Capital, brought nothing but joy to many.
After about a decade of dormancy, the NNPCL announced that the 125,000 barrels per day refinery is now operational, working at 60 per cent capacity.
At last, the dream of getting cheap petrol was near reality.
It was not long ago, the NNPC announced that the Port Harcourt Refinery is fully functional.
While many Nigerians had expressed excitement over this report, many others said their minds were filled with doubts especially after the NNPC opened up on the suspension of operations at the refinery.
However, these doubts became joy when reports that refining has started in Warri.
Unfortunately, this joy was very short.
Obasanjo Vs NNPC
It all started with an interview of former President Obasanjo on Thursday, January 2.
In that interview, Obasanjo doubted the capacity of the NNPC to run government-refineries.
In fact, he even doubted the NNPC’s claims that the refineries are working.
OBJ recounted how his successor, late President Umar Musa Yar’Adua, rejected Alhaji Aliko Dangote’s bid to manage Nigeria’s refineries on a public-private partnership basis.
He stated that Dangote, who now boasts of a 650,000 barrel per day refinery in Lagos, offered $750m for Port Harcourt and Kaduna refineries.
He noted that Dangote has the capacity to manage his privately owned refinery effectively, contrasting it with the government’s inefficiency.
His words: “I asked Shell to come and run it for us and Shell said they wouldn’t. I said, ‘Please come and take equity,’ they said no. I said okay, don’t take equity, come and run it, they said no.
“Later on, I called them. I called the boss of Shell to come and tell me what the problem was and he gave me four or five reasons. He said, first of all, they make a major profit from upstream, not from downstream. He said they run downstream just to keep their head above water.
Dangote In The Mix
“Two, our refineries were too small: 60,000 barrels 100,000 barrels and I think 120,000 barrels. He said that at that time, the average refinery was going for 250,000 barrels.
“Three, he said our refineries were not well maintained. Four, he said that there was too much corruption around the activities of our refineries and they would not want to get involved in that.
“Aliko got a team together and they paid $750m to take part in PPP (Public-Private Partnership) in running the refineries. My successor refunded their money and I went to my successor, I told him what transpired, he said NNPC said they wanted the refinery and they could run it and I said but you know they cannot run it.
“I was told not too long ago that since that time, more than two billion dollars have been squandered on the refineries and they still will not work. If a company like Shell tells me what they told me, I will believe them. But here we are, over $2 billion squandered, and the refineries still won’t work.”
That was how what started like an ordinary interview became a faceoff.
“We no go gree,” NNPC said, just like many of us did during our secondary school protests.
The truth is, this is not the first time Obasanjo is sharing these sentiments. In the past, the former president had said that those refineries can never work.
The Invitation
Obasanjo’s comments sparked widespread reactions and a prompt response from NNPC.
“Come and tour the refinery,” NNPC told OBJ.
In their exact words: “We extend an invitation to our esteemed former president to join us in this historic journey. His wisdom and experience are invaluable, and we deeply appreciate his insights and guidance, which will always be welcomed and cherished.”
Trust Obasanjo, this response by the NNPC did not settle when he blasted the petroleum company tagging the invitation as an insult.
Obasanjo said the oil company had not sent any formal invitation to him as of Thursday, January 2, 2024.
He said: “Is that the right way to invite a former president of the country? Who says Baba has even seen the statement or read the news? It is a total disrespect for the office of the former president.
“Ask the NNPCL that as of January 2, have they written to him? Is there any official letter addressed to him, inviting him to the refinery? It is an absolute insult, and the former president cannot dignify such with a response.”
The Good, The Bad, The Ugly
While you enjoy this banter, there are some important things we must as a matter of urgency consider.
What if Obasanjo is right?
We can hear that “God forbid” echoing loud from within your heart yet clouded with doubts.
The thing is, we all know that nothing is impossible in this our dear country.
Did You Miss? Warri Refinery: Fresh Hope For Nigerians
If Obasanjo is saying the truth and it later turns out that the NNPC lied, that may mean that many of the events happening in our petroleum sector are planned and since Nigeria depends solely on its oil, then trust us when we say there is trouble.
There is also a good side.
With the level of confidence in the NNPC’s invitation, we cannot rule out the possibility that these refineries may be up and running.
This would signal a fresh beginning not just in the energy sector, but for Nigeria and Nigerians at large.
Already, there are high hopes of cheap petroleum products.
As we speak, Oil Marketers have projected a possible reduction to as low as 500 naira.
Our only prayer at this point is that the price of other goods should also drop.
You see, in Nigeria, when fuel price goes up, the price of every other thing goes up with everyone pointing to fuel as the major reason.
However, when fuel price crashes, price of goods often refuse to drop.
Correspondents from iBrandtv.com are yet to arrive at the refineries to verify its operational status, however, experts who have visited the plants have confirmed its functionality.
