The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited has revealed that test runs at the 60,000-bpd Port Harcourt refinery will be completed this month.
“Testing will conclude shortly, ensuring the refinery’s efficient operation. That phase will be completed this month,” Reuters quoted NNPC spokesperson, Femi Soneye, as saying.
Soneye added that the test run was a major step towards resuming operations five years after the plant was shut.
The state-owned oil company announced in December the mechanical completion of rehabilitation work on the Area-5 Plant of the facility.
It said the first phase of the plant had been completed, as the facility would start refining 60,000 barrels of crude oil daily after the Christmas break.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, had stated that the first phase of the PHRC was completed on December 20, 2023, adding that refined products’ production would commence after the Yuletide.
It is expected that once functional, alongside the Dangote Refinery which is expected to start oil refining this year, the facility will ease the pressure on the country’s foreign exchange.
Though the cost of refined products would reduce once these facilities start pumping, experts and downstream operators stated it would not lead to a massive price crash.
