A consortium of investors from South Korea has finalized plans to establish four refineries in Nigeria, each with a capacity of 100,000 barrels, the Federal Government has disclosed.
The announcement was made by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri, during the inaugural summit of the Crude Oil Refineries Owners Association of Nigeria in Lagos.
Lokpobiri stated that the government is committed to creating a conducive environment for investors interested in building refineries, emphasizing the approval recently granted to the consortium from South Korea, whose name he did not disclose.
“We are encouraging investors to build refineries by providing an open and transparent environment. A recent approval has been granted for a consortium from South Korea to establish four 100,000-barrel refineries at different locations in Nigeria,” he said.
He added that the government is adopting a public-private partnership model to attract investment into the midstream and downstream sectors, which will facilitate the development of more modular and mega refineries.
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Lokpobiri also discussed the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission’s new guidelines aimed at ensuring domestic crude supply transparency and feedstock availability for local refineries. The government plans to provide special concessions to local refinery owners and guarantee access to crude supply for their operations.
Furthermore, the minister reiterated the government’s commitment to fully deregulating the downstream oil sector and implementing policies to mitigate the impact of rising energy prices on vulnerable populations. This includes facilitating easier access to tax exemptions for importing refinery equipment, positioning Nigeria as a self-sufficient petroleum producer and a hub for refining in Africa.
Lokpobiri also touched on plans to review the Petroleum Industry Act to support refinery infrastructure through the National Gas Infrastructure Fund and noted ongoing efforts to enhance manpower development, research, and innovation in the refining sector. Additionally, the government aims to establish apprenticeship programs with existing refineries to build local expertise in refinery operations.
In response to the problem of crude oil theft and illegal refining, Lokpobiri said the ministry had formed a special committee to explore home-grown solutions for increasing in-country refining capacity.
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