The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) has openly criticised the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Bayo Ojulari, accusing him of failing to prioritise the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt refinery.
In a statement on Monday, PETROAN’s Zonal Chairman for System 2E (Eastern Zone), Sunny Nkpe, expressed alarm over the “slow pace of work” at the Old Port Harcourt Refinery (Area 5). The facility was shut down on May 24, 2025, for what was meant to be a 30-day scheduled repair, yet remains idle.
Nkpe revealed he had personally visited the site last weekend, only to discover minimal activity. He further alleged that Ojulari, four months into his role, had yet to visit the refinery. “The current Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC, Bayo Ojulari, has not yet visited the Port Harcourt Refinery physically within four months in office, indicating a lack of passion for the functionality of the Port Harcourt refinery,” Nkpe said.
According to Nkpe, contractors complained of being owed for over a year, with critical repairs on Units 12 and 14 of the cracking and blending plant nearly completed before Ojulari took office. He accused the NNPCL of enabling private refinery monopolies by delaying the project. “All was set for the Old Port Harcourt Refinery to commence production… before the new Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC gave no commitment and showed lack of interest,” he alleged.
He warned that thousands of tanker drivers and marketers were out of work due to the shutdown, noting the plant’s importance to supplying major cities such as Aba, Enugu, and Makurdi. “It is imperative that we agree on legitimate options to call for the revival of the Port Harcourt refinery,” Nkpe added.
Nkpe appealed to President Bola Tinubu to intervene, suggesting that “unnecessary delays look orchestrated” by vested interests. He also recalled the positive economic impact during the refinery’s brief seven-month operation.
In a separate development, two northern groups — the Arewa Community for Empowerment and Development and the Arewa Consultative Youth Movement — have taken the NNPCL’s Chief Financial Officer, Dapo Segun, to the Federal High Court in Kaduna. The plaintiffs accused Segun of a “direct and supervisory role” in both the failed rehabilitation of Nigeria’s refineries and the controversial OVH Energy acquisition.
They are demanding his investigation, suspension, arrest, and prosecution, claiming selective justice in the oil sector. “We cannot have two sets of rules — one for northerners and another for others,” said Kabiru Yusuf, President of the Arewa Consultative Youth Movement.
The suit, filed by counsel Ahmed Yusuf, seeks an order compelling the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate Segun within seven days and publish its findings within 14 days of completion.
Nigeria’s refineries have struggled for decades despite billions of dollars in rehabilitation contracts, leaving the nation reliant on imports. The 2022 OVH Energy acquisition expanded NNPCL’s retail reach but remains controversial.
Efforts to obtain NNPCL’s response proved unsuccessful, as the company has no spokesperson, and listed phone numbers were unreachable, okay.ng reports.
