NNPCL denies explosion at Warri refinery

• Published On: 09 February 2025 at 18:44

The NNPCL has denied reports of an explosion at the recently refurbished Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company.

Olufemi Soneye, NNPCL's Chief Corporate Communications Officer, clarified this in a statement released Friday night.

Soneye dismissed reports of an explosion at the Warri refinery as false, urging the public to disregard them.

He explained that the refinery was undergoing routine maintenance.

The statement said, "NNPC Ltd. wishes to clarify that there was no explosion at the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company (WRPC). Any reports that claim otherwise are completely false.

"On January 25, 2025, operations at WRPC Area 1 were intentionally halted to allow for necessary intervention work on select equipment, including field instruments, that were affecting sustainable and consistent operations. These interventions are critical to ensuring the production of finished and intermediate products that meet specifications, particularly Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and Kerosene.

"The routine maintenance is progressing as planned, and Area 1 will be operational within the next few days. Despite ongoing interventions, AGO loading has been maintained at an average of eight trucks per day for the past 11 days, with a sufficient supply to support ongoing truck load-out operations.

Soneye reaffirmed NNPCL's commitment to providing an uninterrupted supply of petroleum products from the refinery.

He expressed the company's gratitude for stakeholders' patience and cooperation during essential maintenance activities.

On December 30, 2024, NNPCL revived the Warri refinery, which had been inactive for years.