By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Nigerian Senate says it would launch an investigation into the award of contracts regarding the rehabilitation of all the state-owned refineries in the country between 2010 and 2023.
Nigeria expends a huge chunk of its annual budget maintaining the refineries despite importing all oil products.
Aside the Tuesday resolution to mandate its Committee on Downstream Petroleum to launch the probe, the lawmakers also plan to ascertain progress on the ongoing rehabilitation works in all refineries, a move aiming to forestall waste and corruption.
The Senate will interrogate the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources and relevant agencies under it, including the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), on the best approach to commercializing and/or ensuring profitability of the state-owned Refineries.
Also contained in the resolution is a planned extension of invitation to the NNPCL, NUPRC and LNG to explain the nation’s preparation for Green Energy Sources in line with the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
The Senate also expressed dissatisfaction with perceived move to sabotage Federal Government’s effort to resuscitate the nation’s refineries, in spite of N11.35 trillion spent on maintenance of the moribund refineries.
Despite being the largest producer of oil in Africa, Nigeria largely depends on imported finished products to serve its over 200 million population.
The ongoing rehabilitation works will position the facilities to commence the refining of petroleum products at a date not later than 2024.
The first private refinery in the country, Dangote Refinery was earlier scheduled to commence operation before the end of the year.
