The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, Mr. Mele Kyari has said the company has not breached any of the enabling laws guiding its dealings with partners, hence should be counted out of any claims of economic sabotage.
Kyari, who was addressing the Senate Ad-Hoc Committee investigating alleged economic sabotage in the Nigeria Petroleum Industry at the National Assembly on Wednesday, stated that the refining business is a straightforward business which any investor should know before coming into the market.
“Refining business is a straightforward business. You must secure (a source for) your feedstock and you must find a market,” Kyari was quoted as saying in a statement signed by NNPC Ltd’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, on Wednesday. “This is basic and this determines what happens in any refinery anywhere in the world. That is the business of refining. We have done nothing to sabotage any domestic refinery.”
According to the GCEO, the law is very clear on domestic crude oil supply obligations and also on providing for local refineries.
However, Kyari added that the same law also said that there must be a willing buyer and a willing seller.
On the alleged importation of sub-standard products into the country, Kyari said the NNPC Limited has nothing to do with that as the relevant regulatory agencies will, by law, not allow any sub-standard product into the country.
Kyari also supported calls for the Ad-hoc Committee to beam the interactive sessions live on national television to prevent misinforming Nigerians.
He explained that there is enough infrastructure to produce two million barrels of crude per day but the challenges of crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism and absence of investment in the upstream are the major factors hindering the sector.
He said as a company owned by over 200 million Nigerians, NNPC Limited has grown from a loss-making position to a profit-making entity.
While pledging full cooperation towards the Committee in its efforts to unravel the allegations being investigated, Kyari said the NNPC Limited, its entire board, management and staff remain loyal, faithful and committed to Nigeria and will continue to act in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), the Company & Allied Matters Act (CAMA) and other enabling laws and regulations governing the nation’s energy Industry.
“We are faithful, loyal and committed to the progress and development of this country. It is our duty to protect the overall interest of this great nation. We are not in breach of any rules,” Kyari concluded.
Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Group, revealed in a recent CNN interview that international oil companies in Nigeria were reluctant to supply crude oil to his refinery, preferring instead to export it for foreign exchange, a practice they are unwilling to abandon.
Dangote Industries Limited’s (DIL) Vice President of Oil and Gas, Devakumar Edwin, also recently alleged that International Oil Companies (IOCs) in Nigeria were deliberately undermining the Dangote Oil Refinery and Petrochemicals project, actively working against its success.
