The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited on Thursday signed an agreement with Daewoo Engineering & Construction Nigeria Limited for the rehabilitation of the Kaduna Refinery & Petrochemical Company (KRPC) Limited.
The signing of the agreement took place at the NNPC headquarters in Abuja.
“NNPCLimited’s Kaduna Refining & Petrochemical Company Ltd (KRPC) & Daewoo Engineering & Construction Nigeria Ltd. signed a contract for maintenance services for quick-fix repairs of KRPC,” the oil firm said on its official Twitter page on Thursday.
Last October, NNPC Limited signed a memorandum of understanding with Daewoo Group of South Korea on the sidelines of the 2022 World Bio Summit in Seoul, South Korea for the rehabilitation of the refinery.
The 110,000 bpd-capacity Kaduna Refinery is one of Nigeria’s four dysfunctional refineries that have produced no fuel for years leaving the country to rely on imported petroleum products. It recorded a N22.9 billion loss in 2021.
The biggest state-run refinery, which is Port Harcourt (PHRC), is currently undergoing repairs handled by Tecnimont of Italy.
Earlier in August 2021, the Federal Executive Council approved the award of the contract for the rehabilitation of Warri and Kaduna Refineries at the combined total sum of $1.5 billion.
At the signing of the agreement on Thursday, the NNPC Executive Vice President, Downstream, Adeyemi Adetunji, said it is a great honour that they are signing the maintenance service contract for the refinery.
“This marks a milestone in the history of KRPC considering that the last Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) on the refinery occurred about fifteen (15) years ago,” Mr Adetunji said.
He noted that the project was framed after extensive engagement with Daewoo on the quick-fix strategy to repair and re-stream KRPC and operate it on a sustainable basis at a minimum capacity utilization of 60 per cent.
“This project shall be executed in three work packages as a Maintenance Services contract by Daewoo E&C Nigeria Limited at an estimated maximum cost ceiling of $740,669,600.00 with a duration of Twenty-One (21) months.
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“The quick-fix strategy guarantees the fastest route to restreaming Warri Refinery Petrochemical Company (WRPC) and KRPC for in-country production of refined petroleum products.
“Restoring WRPC and KRPC back to operation will guarantee energy security for the country and reduce dependence on imported petroleum products in view of near total dependence on the supply of imported petroleum products and the impact the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war is having on global supply,” he said.
Revenues
He explained further that the plan will generate revenue, reduce demand for forex, supply raw materials to industries, create employment for Nigerians and ensure technology transfer, amongst other benefits.
“The proposed quick-fix initiative on KRPC is expected to restore it to a minimum of 60 per cent of its nameplate capacity by Q4 2024,” he added.
He said NNPC Limited is using a combination of internally generated revenue and third-party financing to execute the repairs of the refineries.
He added that post-rehabilitation of the three refineries, globally reputable operations and maintenance contractors shall be engaged to run the refinery safely, reliably, sustainably and profitably.
He, however, implores total commitment from all staff in ensuring that the project is successfully executed, noting that over 200 million Nigerians are looking up to NNPC Limited to deliver on the mandate.
He said the board and management of NNPC Limited are fully committed to providing all the required support to ensure that the refineries are fixed.
Meanwhile, he said the rehabilitation of PHRC has progressed considerably.
“The old refinery is currently at 64 per cent completion and the plant is expected back in operation in Q2 2023, while the entire PHRC Rehabilitation Project currently stands at about 59 per cent.
“On the other hand, WRPC Quick-fix Project has achieved 28 per cent completion and is expected to be re-streamed by the end of this year,” he said.
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