Mechanical Completion of Port Harcourt Refinery- NNPCL’s Christmas Gift to Nigerians
The Port Harcourt refinery, situated in Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta region and operational since 1965, stands as the oldest and largest among the three government-owned oil refining facilities in the West African nation.
Operated by the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the refinery complex comprises a 60,000 barrels per day (bpd) old refinery operational since 1965 and a 150,000bpd new refinery commissioned in 1989.
Despite possessing a combined crude processing capacity of 210,000 bpd, the Port Harcourt refinery, like other state-owned refineries in Nigeria, has operated at a fraction of its capacity due to process inefficiencies and insufficient maintenance. This has resulted in Nigeria, Africa’s largest crude producer, relying heavily on imports of refined petroleum products.
The PHRC rehabilitation project, totaling approximately $1.5 billion, encompasses the engineering, procurement, construction, installation, and commissioning phases. As of the latest update, Area-5, a segment of the refinery with a production capacity of 60 million barrels per day, has completed the engineering, procurement, construction, and installation phases, marking mechanical completion.
The NNPC officially signed a $1.5 billion contract with Tecnimont SPA for the rehabilitation program on April 7, 2021, with the project expected to be completed in three phases by 2025. The first phase, involving mechanical completion, has already been achieved.
The new Port Harcourt refinery features various units such as Crude Distillation, Vacuum Distillation, Naphtha Hydrotreating, Catalytic Reforming, Continuous Catalyst Regeneration, kerosene hydrotreating, fluid catalytic cracking, dimersol, butter isomerization, alkylation, hydrogen purification, fuel gas vaporizer, sour water, and caustic treatment units.
The old refinery comprises a Crude Distillation Unit, a Catalytic Reforming Unit, and a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) facility.
The refinery complex employs four turbo-generators for electricity generation and four boilers for steam generation. The refined products include petrol, diesel, LPG, aviation and domestic kerosene, low-pour fuel oil (LPFO), and heavy-pour fuel oil (HPFO).
Despite previous delays in meeting completion timelines, the government has reaffirmed its commitment to revitalizing the refinery. The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, has indicated that the Port Harcourt refinery will be operational by December, significantly reducing the importation of Liquefied Petroleum Gas after the Christmas break.
He said, “The meeting today coincides with the commencement of operations at the Port Harcourt refinery. This is to announce to Nigerians that in fulfillment of our pledge to complete phase one of the Port Harcourt refinery by the end of 2023, and the subsequent streaming of phase two in 2024, we happily announce the mechanical completion of flare start-up on December 20, 2023.
“This heralds the commencement of the production of petroleum products after the Christmas break. We want to thank Nigerians for their patience and trust in the NNPC to deliver on our promise and mandate in the rehabilitation of our refineries.”
Lokpobiri emphasized that following the successful completion of the initial phase of the Port Harcourt refinery, the rehabilitation efforts would extend to the remaining refineries in Warri and Kaduna.
“The mechanical part of the plant is completed and this is the beginning of not just the Port Harcourt refinery phases one and two, but the one for Warri and then the one in Kaduna, so that we will be able to benefit from this massive investment that the country has made,” the minister stated.
Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, highlighted that the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC) would focus on producing cooking gas, anticipating a decrease in the need for importing this commodity.
He added, “In August when we came here, we were told that by December, this plant would come on stream, and today we have witnessed that. So I’m impressed.
“And it is good news equally to LPG (cooking gas) users that as the refinery begins after Christmas, we will have a sufficient supply of LPG, which will automatically reduce the imports at that level.
So it is something to celebrate.“With the coming up onstream of this phase one, others will follow as well because the NNPC has fulfilled the first assignment, and I believe others will be completed on schedule.”
Mele Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL, clarified that as of December 15, 2023, significant progress had been made in the rehabilitation project. Specifically, approximately 84.4% of Area-5 Plant, a crucial segment of the Port Harcourt refinery, and 77.4% of the entire rehabilitation project had been completed.
He added, “This is just to announce to Nigerians that in fulfillment of our pledge to bring on stream phase 1 of the PH refinery by the end of 2023 and the subsequent streaming of phase 2 in 2024, we heartily announce the mechanical completion and flare-up of the refinery on the 20th of December 2023.
This heralds the commencement of production of petroleum “We want to thank Nigerians for their patience and trust in the NNPC to deliver on our promise and mandate for the rehabilitation of our refineries.
“In our quest to ensure that this refinery is re-streamed to continue to deliver value to Nigerians, we made a promise that we will reach a mechanical completion of phase one of the rehabilitation project by the end of December and get the other plants running in 2024. Today, we have kept those commitments,” Kyari stated.
The Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) expressed appreciation for the efforts of NNPCL’s staff and the EPCIC contractors, acknowledging their contributions to the noteworthy achievement of the refinery. Additionally, he mentioned that the second phase of the project is anticipated to conclude in the fourth quarter of 2024.
“We are done with phase one. We will complete phase two as promised within 2024, maximum – the last quarter of 2024,” he stated.
Chief Pius Akinyelure, the Chairman of the NNPCL Board, characterized the milestone as historic in his remarks, underscoring the board’s pride in the staff and management of the refinery for their achievements.
“We are just starting. We want to be at the highest level of production so that we will keep the prices of petroleum prices in the country stable to give comfort to our people and generate more revenue for our country,” Akinyelure noted.
Ibrahim Onoja, the Managing Director of Port Harcourt Refining Company Limited, affirmed that the facility underwent comprehensive rehabilitation to ensure its longevity, serving the country for many decades to come.
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“This plant you see is a renewed plant that will last Nigeria for decades. We can beat our chest and say we’ve come over 50 years and we’ll go another 50 years.
“This will give value to Nigeria, create jobs, provide feedstock for industries, revenue, foreign exchange, energy security, and more. Phase one of this refinery is 60,000 barrels per day, and the other one is 150,000 bpd. So we have a complementary 210,000bpd refinery,” he stated
