The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) and the Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN) have predicted a slight decline in the retail price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, following the expected commencement of operations at the Port Harcourt Refining Company next month.
Both IPMAN and MEMAN have expressed their readiness to start product loading from the refinery, stressing the need for the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to fulfill its commitment to commence distributing refined products from the Port Harcourt plant within the next two weeks.
The revival of the refinery’s operations was confirmed by Mele Kyari, the Group Managing Director of NNPCL, during a Senate Ad-hoc Committee session investigating the Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) projects of Nigeria’s refineries.
Kyari stated that mechanical repairs at the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries have been completed, with Port Harcourt set to go operational shortly and Kaduna expected to follow suit in December.
This development is expected to inject a significant volume of domestically refined petrol into the Nigerian market, potentially reducing the nation’s dependence on imported fuel and leading to a slight reduction in pump prices.
Kyari explained, “We did a mechanical completion of the (Port Harcourt) refinery, that was what we said in December. We now have crude oil already stocked in the refinery. We are doing regulatory compliance tests that must happen in every refinery before you start it, and I assure you that this Port Harcourt refinery will start in the next two weeks.”
Abubakar Maigandi, the National President of IPMAN, told Punch that marketers were informed of the development and were prepared to start lifting products. He mentioned that once products start coming out from the plant, the cost of petrol would reduce, albeit marginally.
Clement Isong, the Executive Secretary of MEMAN, mentioned that major oil marketers had been buying products from the trading arm of NNPCL, adding that this arm of the national oil firm would be in charge of the products from the Port Harcourt refinery. He noted that while the facility would not be able to provide all the volumes of petrol required by consumers, MEMAN would definitely load from the plant by purchasing refined products through the trading arm of NNPCL.