Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has revealed that his successor, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, turned down a $750 million offer from Aliko Dangote, the chairman of Dangote Group, to manage the Port Harcourt and Kaduna refineries in 2007.
In an interview with Channels Television on Thursday, January 2, Obasanjo reflected on the challenges faced with Nigeria’s refineries, specifically the ones in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna, during his administration.
Obasanjo explained that although the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited knew it was unable to effectively manage the country’s refineries, it still assured Yar’Adua that it could take on the task. This led to the rejection of Dangote’s proposal.
He said, “When I was president, I wanted to do something about the three refineries we have: Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna. Aliko got a team together after I asked Shell to come and run it for us. And Shell said they wouldn’t.”
Obasanjo went on to share his conversations with the Shell boss, who listed several issues that prevented the company from managing the refineries. These included the small size of the refineries, poor maintenance, and widespread corruption surrounding their operations. The Shell boss also mentioned that the company made more profit from upstream operations than from the downstream sector.
Obasanjo continued, “After that, Aliko got a team together and they paid $750m to take part in PPP (Public–Private Partnership) in running the refineries. My successor refunded their money and I went to my successor and told him what transpired. He said NNPC said they wanted the refineries and they could run it. I now said but you know they cannot run it.”
The former president also expressed disappointment with the ongoing inefficiency in refinery management, noting that over $2 billion had been spent without improving the situation. He expressed his confidence in Dangote’s ability to run his privately owned refinery effectively, comparing that to the failure of the state-owned refineries.
“I was told not too long ago that since that time, more than $2 billion have been squandered on the refinery and they still will not work,” he said. “If a company like Shell tells me what they told me, I will believe them. But here we are, over $2 billion squandered, and the refineries still won’t work.”
In recent updates, on December 31, 2024, Mele Kyari, the group chief executive officer (GCEO) of NNPC, announced that the Warri Refining & Petrochemicals Company (WRPC) in Delta State had resumed operations. Similarly, the NNPC announced on November 26 that the Port Harcourt refinery had officially started processing crude oil.
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Olawale Moses Oyewole is an adept writer who stays on top of current events and curate informative and engaging articles for his readers. He is a digital strategist who help brands gain online visibility.
