Confusion as NNPC boss contradicts self on revival of 4 refineries at OTC, Houston
Experts in procurements and management consultancy have raised issues with the doublespeak of the managing director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru on how the refineries will be up again at the ongoing 50th Offshore Technology Conference, OTC, in Houston, Texas, USA.
Earlier in the conference, NNPC told Nigerians that it will soon announce bid winners on the revival to about 90 per cent performance; using a policy he called Contractor-Financing Model (CFM).
On another leg, the same NNPC at the same conference is revealing that the Corporation; “In terms of refining and production of local petroleum products, we have faced the challenge head-on and we are fully committed to the Ministerial directive of ending the importation of petroleum products before the end of 2019.
“We are in talks with the original builders of the refineries to return them to at least 90 per cent capacity utilisation before the 2019 deadline. The expectation is for Nigeria to transform from being a net exporter of crude oil to being a net exporter of petroleum products.
So questions begging for answers include who will then be announced as the bid winners for the revival of the four refineries soon? Is it the builders of the refineries or contractors willing to finance the refineries revival with their hard earned money?
