Kelvin Emmanuel, an energy expert and CEO of Dairy Hills, has called for the Nigerian government to withdraw from refinery operations, advocating for a shift towards private sector management.
During an ARISE NEWS interview, he argued that the government should sell off its refining assets and focus its attention on boosting upstream oil production.
“It’s important for the government to hands off refining,” he remarked. “Sell the business and allow the private sector to run refinery operations in Nigeria.” He added that the government’s target of 2 million barrels per day for 2025 is overly optimistic, suggesting that the country will likely fall short, with a more realistic figure being between 1.7 and 1.75 million barrels per day.
Emmanuel stressed that the government, through the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), should focus on raising oil production.
“The effort should be on upstream, to focus on raising the output of crude oil so that you can ensure that you comply with sections 109 and the gazette issued by the regulator, NUPRC,” he explained. This, he argued, would ensure that Nigeria’s domestic refineries, which have an installed capacity of 864,500 barrels per day, are supplied with the necessary crude oil before export permits are granted.
Moving beyond oil imports, Emmanuel believes Nigeria should leverage its existing refining capacity to meet local demand and eventually become an exporter of petroleum products.
In addition to his stance on refining, the energy expert called for a forensic audit of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). He has long advocated for an external forensic audit, particularly one conducted by an internationally certified forensic auditor, to ascertain the true state of NNPC’s finances. He highlighted concerns over the NNPC’s financial performance, stating, “I’ve always called for the provost of NNPC an external forensic audit… to see the actual state of the books of NNPC,” Emmanuel said.
The energy expert also weighed in on the recent statements by Farouk Ahmed, the CEO of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), who had cast doubt on the quality of petroleum products from Dangote. Emmanuel urged Ahmed to apply the same rigorous standards to NNPC.
“He should also apply the same standard to NNPC,” Emmanuel said, calling for lab tests to verify whether NNPC’s petroleum products meet the required standards. He pointed out that the current sulphur level limit of 200ppm, as prescribed by ECOWAS, expired on December 31, 2024, and questioned why NNPC’s products were not being subjected to similar scrutiny.
Frances Ibiefo
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