The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority has revealed that the shut-down Port Harcourt Refining Company is still supplying 349,000 litres of diesel daily. According to the regulatory agency, the refinery, which was shut down on May 24, 2025, for maintenance, has been evacuating the diesel produced before its shutdown into the market as of November.
The refinery’s shutdown has entered its seventh month, with no production activities taking place. The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited had announced a one-month maintenance shutdown, but the refinery has yet to resume operations. Prior to its shutdown, the refinery had resumed production in November 2024, after years of inactivity, with a daily capacity of 1.5 million litres of diesel and 2.1 million litres of pour fuel oil.
However, six months after resuming production, the facility was shut down again. The new Group Chief Executive of the NNPC, Bayo Ojulari, stated that the refinery was losing around $500m every month on operations before rehabilitation works were suspended. Ojulari attributed the losses to the refinery’s inefficient operations, processing less than 40% of the crude oil pumped into it.
The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria has called for the privatisation of Nigeria’s four state-owned refineries, citing the need to eliminate the recurring fiscal burden on the government and improve operational efficiency. However, Ojulari has rejected calls for the sale of the refineries, expressing confidence that the plants can be revamped to become sustainable and revenue-generating assets.
The continued shutdown of the Port Harcourt Refining Company and the country’s other refineries has significant implications for Nigeria’s fuel supply and economy. The government’s plans to reposition the refineries as sustainable assets will be closely watched, as the country seeks to improve its refining capacity and reduce its reliance on imported fuel. With the refinery’s future uncertain, the Nigerian government must find a solution to ensure a stable fuel supply and address the country’s refining sector challenges.
