The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has announced the temporary shutdown of the recently re-streamed Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company (WRPC) for routine maintenance. The refinery, which resumed operations after over a decade of dormancy, is expected to be back online within days.
NNPC: Maintenance Needed for Steady Operations
According to a statement from NNPC’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, the shutdown was intentional to conduct critical intervention works on select equipment, particularly field instruments affecting sustainable production.
“These interventions are necessary to ensure the production of on-specification finished and intermediate products, especially Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and Kerosene (Kero),” Soneye explained.
He assured that despite the maintenance, AGO loading has continued at an average of eight trucks per day, with sufficient supply to sustain load-out operations.
Refinery Expected to Resume Soon
NNPC emphasized its commitment to uninterrupted fuel supply and assured stakeholders of a quick turnaround.
The 125,000 barrels-per-day Warri refinery was restarted just before the new year, operating at 60% capacity after over 10 years of inactivity. Its rehabilitation was part of the $1.48 billion contract approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in August 2021 for the Warri and Kaduna refineries.
