Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), Engr Bayo Ojulari, has said efforts are being made to expand the capacities of the Warri and Port Harcourt refineries into the petrochemicals value chain for profitability.
Ojulari stated this during a visit to the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company (WRPC), where he unveiled plans for a Chinese-backed technical partnership aimed at completing rehabilitation and boosting refining operations at the facility.
The visit comes weeks after the MoU was signed on April 30, 2026, by NNPC with Sanjiang Chemical Company Limited and Xinganchen (Fuzhou) Industrial Park Operation and Management Co. Ltd. The deal is structured as a potential Technical Equity Partnership.
The NNPC GCEO, who rejected calls to sell the Warri and Port Harcourt refineries as scrap, maintained that through painstaking and strategic efforts, the facility would spring back to life within the next 24 months and once again be a hub for domestic refining of petroleum products under a sustainable and commercially viable operating model.
He said the NNPC is focused on building a profitable refinery, efficiently managed and capable of sustaining operations without depending on repeated government interventions.
He stated that in the past, the refineries have been operated at a significant loss because of inefficiencies, adding that they are working towards having refineries that operate sustainably.
Ojulari stated that across the world, refineries producing petroleum products from crude oil operate with a slim profit margin. To make them profitable, he said, the current practice is to extend the value chain into petrochemicals.
To guarantee profitability, Ojulari said the partnership with the Chinese firms focuses on tapping into the broader downstream energy value chain.
“So, while we think about the refinery that would have petrol for everybody, for that refinery itself to be profitable, the Sanjiang and Fuzhou have committed to expand the refinery into petrochemicals,” Ojulari stated.
The NNPC boss further stated that the Warri refinery already has a petrochemical plant, which would be revived and expanded.
“It is the expansion of the petrochemical that would generate the profitability we need to sustain the full plant,” he affirmed.
READ ALSO:
- NNPC Refineries Repair: Inside the Growing Demand for Audit Before the Chinese Move in
- NNPC Engaging Competent Partners to Revive its Refineries – Ojulari
- How Improved Pipeline Security Boosts Oil Output – NNPC
- Afreximbank Commits $2.5bn to $4bn Financing for Dangote Refinery
- Dangote Refinery to Launch IPO in September as Investor Demands Hit $2bn
Petrochemical integration involves converting refining byproducts into high-value chemicals used in plastics, manufacturing, and pharmaceuticals.
The Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, which is located in Delta State, was built at a cost of $478 million and commissioned in 1978. Originally designed to process 100,000 barrels of crude oil per day, its refining capacity was later expanded to 125,000 barrels daily in 1987. A year later, the petrochemical complex was added.
Following years of operational inefficiency and declining performance, the Federal Government approved a major rehabilitation of the facility at a cost of about $897 million in 2021. However, after operating for some months, the facility was shut down in 2025.
Ojulari said it was shut down because it was operating at a loss and signaled moves to engage competent technical partners to overhaul and run the facility.
According to him, the MoU signed with the Chinese firms is a non-binding one.
He stated that following the signing of the MoU, the Chinese firms have sent over 35 engineers to physically assess what is happening in the Warri and Port Harcourt refineries. According to him, they would, after the assessment, submit a report and a proposal on how both parties can collaborate going forward.
Victor Ezeja is a Nigerian journalist skilled in producing insightful news analyses, feature stories, and interviews that simplify complex issues and drive informed public discourse. His work combines rigorous research, balanced reporting, and compelling storytelling to highlight developments shaping industries and society. Victor, who holds a Master's Degree in Mass Communication, specializes in energy, aviation, business, and economic reporting. He can be reached via @VICTOREZEJA on X