“NNPC Must Explain”: Atiku Reacts to FG's Plan To Privatalised Port Harcourt Refinery
- Atiku Abubakar opened up on the plan by NNPCL to sell the freshly restored Port Harcourt refinery
- This followed the announcement made by the NNPCL for interested public to apply for its maintenance and operation
- He asked the commission to detail the expected benefit the satisfaction of Nigerians and what benefits its newly discovered approach to privatisation will confer on Nigeria and Nigerians
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Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over 3-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market
Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president and the People's Democratic Party (PDP) presidential contender for 2023, has reacted to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited's (NNPCL) intentions to privatised the Port Harcourt refinery.
Source: UGC
Legit.ng earlier reported that the NNPCL called for applications from private companies interested in maintaining and operating the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC).
Atiku said in a tweet on Tuesday morning said It would have been better if the NNPCL had sold the refinery before it underwent renovation.
Atiku supports NNPC's decision
The former presidential candidate, who had previously spoken in favor of privatizing the oil industry, tasked the NNPCL to outline for Nigerians the advantages of privatizing the refinery.
He wrote,
“I have always advocated for far-reaching reforms to reposition Nigeria’s oil sector and, indeed, other sectors of our economy. In particular, I had consistently called on the Buhari administration to break its monopoly in all infrastructure sectors, including the refineries, and give investors, both foreign and domestic, a larger role in funding and management.
“My position has been well laid out in The Atiku Plan (2018) and My Covenant With Nigerians (2022). But our suggestions fell on deaf ears. First, they refused to privatize the refineries. They left them idle for years while paying humongous staff salaries. Then, they contracted a loan of US$1.5 billion for rehabilitation.
“Now, the current administration wants to turn the rehabilitated refinery to private concerns for operation and maintenance!"
Without prejudice to the terms of the agreement between the NNPC and the private operators, he said that it would undoubtedly have been better if the NNPC had sold the refinery, pre-rehabilitation, to avoid the burden of debt.
He added,
“The @nnpclimited must explain to the satisfaction of Nigerians what benefits its newly discovered approach to privatisation will confer on Nigeria and Nigerians.”
NNPCL Makes Highest Ever Profit in 47 Years, Opens up on Port Harcourt Refinery, Petrol Price
Legit.ng reported that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) disclosed on Tuesday, January 9, 2024, that it made a profit of N2.548 trillion in 2022, describing it as the highest profit since it began operations 47 years ago.
The company is a state-owned oil corporation founded in 1977 and the largest holder in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. After Nigeria passed the Petroleum Industry Act by ex-President Muhammadu Buhari in August 2022, it began commercial operations.
The company posted a loss of N803 billion in 2018 in a one-page document.
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Source: Legit.ng
