NNPC reiterates commitment to upgrade, expand Kaduna refinery

The Group Managing Director of NNPC, Dr Maikanti Baru, has reiterated the commitment of the corporation to upgrade and expand Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company Limited (KRPC).

Baru made the pledge during a Town Hall meeting with management and staff of KRPC in Kaduna, Mr Ndu Ughamadu, Group Public Affairs Division of NNPC, said in a statement in Abuja. He said the upgrade was in line with the 12 key business focus areas of the corporation aimed at returning the refinery to the path of growth and profitability. The managing director said efforts were on to explore the possibility of piping crude oil from Niger Republic to be refined in KRPC. Baru said it was important to explore alternative crude supply to KRPC, which had been affected by vandalism of pipelines and obsolescence.

He said the initiative would reduce downtime of the plant and ensure optimal utilisation.

”Due to challenges with the aged refinery and crude oil pipelines that had been breached severally, the operations of the refinery have been epileptic.

”This, we are determined to resolve through various intervention methods ,including evaluation of alternative crude oil supply from Niger Republic through building of a pipelines of over 1, 000km from Agadem to Kaduna. That effort is being championed by Mr President himself,” Baru said. .

According to him, the corporation has already started engagements with the Nigerian Minister of Petroleum and the private company operating the field at Agadem.

Baru promised to drive the energy supply project to power industries in Kaduna by ensuring the completion of the Ajaokuta-Abuja-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline.

Earlier, the Managing Director of KRPC, Mr Idi Mukhtar, said the Fluid Cracking Catalytic Unit (FCCU) of the plant was re-streamed in June.

“The Kerosene Hydrotreating Unit (KHU) rehabilitation is on-going with the equipment overhaul and integrity checks.

”When operational the margin of value addition on kerosene and Aviation Turbine Kerosene (ATK) will provide millions of naira in revenue, even at a throughput of 60 per cent,” Mukhtar said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the refinery was designed to process both imported paraffinic and Nigerian crude oils into fuels and lubes products.

It was constructed by Chiyoda Chemical Engineering and Construction Company (now Chiyoda Corporation) of Japan.

In December 1986, the design capacity of the fuel plants of the refinery was successfully debottolnecked from 50,000 BPSD to 60,000 BPSD, bringing the total refinery installed capacity to 110,000 BPSD.

The refinery, which resumed production late last year, after it was repaired, stopped production early in the year because of attacks on petroleum pipelines by militants.