The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has dismissed speculations about the potential sale of the Port Harcourt Refining Company, affirming its commitment to completing the refinery’s full rehabilitation and retaining ownership.

 

This assurance was given by NNPC’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Bashir Ojulari, during a town hall meeting held on Wednesday. He clarified that the decision is not a reversal but a result of ongoing technical and financial reviews of the Port Harcourt, Kaduna, and Warri refineries.

 

Ojulari admitted that the earlier plan to commence operations at the Port Harcourt refinery before completing its rehabilitation was “ill-informed and sub-commercial.” He stressed the need for more advanced technical partnerships to complete the project to high standards.

 

Dispelling concerns sparked by his recent comments at the 2025 OPEC Seminar in Vienna—where he said “all options are on the table”—Ojulari said the statement was misinterpreted and did not indicate an intent to sell the refinery. He warned that any such sale would only lead to further value erosion.

 

His remarks were met with applause from NNPC staff at the meeting, who viewed the declaration as a reaffirmation of a focused, business-oriented strategy within the company.

 

The town hall, which included updates from executive vice presidents across various NNPC divisions—Upstream, Downstream, Finance, Gas, Power, and New Energy—served not just to review performance, but to openly address challenges and outline a clear path forward.

 

Ojulari reiterated NNPC’s role as a key custodian of Nigeria’s energy infrastructure, underscoring the company’s mandate to safeguard national assets and ensure long-term energy security. He reaffirmed his commitment to transforming NNPC into a commercially driven, transparently managed, and performance-focused energy company, fully accountable to the Nigerian people.