By Christie U. Omonigho
The Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Resources Authority says it has issued refining licenses to three companies to build new refineries in the States of Delta, Abia and Edo.
The three proposed refineries are expected to have a combined refining capacity of 140,000 barrels per day, statement from the Authority has disclosed.
The Authority has in its Twitter Handle announced the following companies as meeting the conditions for the licenses. They include Eghudu Refinery Ltd in Edo state which was issued with a 100,000 bpd refining capacity license, MB Refinery and Petrochemicals Company Ltd in Delta State got a 30,000 bpd refinery capacity, and
HIS Refining and Petrochemical Company Ltd in Abia State was issued with license to establish a 10,000 bpd refinery.
The statement read: “The Authority Chief Executive, Engr. Farouk Ahmed presented a License to construct a 100,000 bpd refinery to Eghudu Refinery Ltd in Edo State, a License to establish a 30,000 bpd refinery to MB Refinery and Petrochemicals Company Ltd in Delta State, and a License to establish a 10,000 bpd refinery to HIS
Refining and Petrochemical Company Ltd. in Abia State.
“These Licenses, which would add 140,000 barrels per day to Nigeria’s domestic refining capacity, were presented to the MDs of the companies.”
The growing number of refineries in Nigeria according to data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) show that Nigeria has nine operational refineries, including the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE, the Warri Refinery and Petrochemical Company, the Kaduna Refinery and Petrochemical Company, and the Port Harcourt Refinery Company Limited.
Others are the Aradel Refinery, OPAC Refineries, Waltersmith Refinery and Petrochemical Company, Duport Midstream Company Limited, and the Edo Refinery and Petrochemical Company.
These refineries according to the data, have a combined refining capacity of 974,500 barrels per day, with the Dangote refinery having the largest capacity of 650,000 bpd. However, the majority of the refineries are not producing at full scale.
According to the NUPRC, the nine refineries would require a combined daily crude supply of 770,500 bpd and 123,480,500 barrels in the first half of 2025.
Adding that this number is growing with more new refineries under construction and licensed by the NMDPRA.