Disir
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- Sep 30, 2011
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Oil industry sources over the weekend made startling disclosures of how top industry officials ruined Nigeria’s four refineries by diverting huge funds earmarked for their routine comprehensive turnaround maintenance (TAM).
The four refineries located in Port Harcourt (two), Warri and Kaduna have a combined installed capacity to refine 445,000 barrels of crude per day, but have over the years performed abysmally owing to the obsolete state of the facilities.
Describing the refineries as ‘ATMs’ for successive administrations, a highly placed industry source said attempts to privatise the refineries had been frustrated by those who feed fat from them.
“What has happened over the years was that the authorities set up shell firms that win contracts for the repairs that were never carried out at the end of the day. The huge funds are often used for election purposes”, said the source.
In 2014, it was gathered that about $1.8billion was voted for TAM of the four plants, but there was no indication that the money was utilised for that purpose as all the refineries have remained comatose.
A source added: “All the claims in the past that the refineries were producing were false. If you were following the trend, once the NNPC announces TAM on the refineries, it would be followed by announcement on when the repair would be concluded and what the refineries are producing. In fact at some point, the corporation will announce the production capacity, 60 or even 90 per cent. The next thing is to set the target when the country will end importation. All these were aimed to deceive Nigerians that the money earmarked for the repairs had been utilised for the purpose.
How Top Oil Industry Officials Ruined Nigeria’s Refineries - THISDAYLIVE
There are times I read about this country and wonder if everything about Nigeria is a scam.
The four refineries located in Port Harcourt (two), Warri and Kaduna have a combined installed capacity to refine 445,000 barrels of crude per day, but have over the years performed abysmally owing to the obsolete state of the facilities.
Describing the refineries as ‘ATMs’ for successive administrations, a highly placed industry source said attempts to privatise the refineries had been frustrated by those who feed fat from them.
“What has happened over the years was that the authorities set up shell firms that win contracts for the repairs that were never carried out at the end of the day. The huge funds are often used for election purposes”, said the source.
In 2014, it was gathered that about $1.8billion was voted for TAM of the four plants, but there was no indication that the money was utilised for that purpose as all the refineries have remained comatose.
A source added: “All the claims in the past that the refineries were producing were false. If you were following the trend, once the NNPC announces TAM on the refineries, it would be followed by announcement on when the repair would be concluded and what the refineries are producing. In fact at some point, the corporation will announce the production capacity, 60 or even 90 per cent. The next thing is to set the target when the country will end importation. All these were aimed to deceive Nigerians that the money earmarked for the repairs had been utilised for the purpose.
How Top Oil Industry Officials Ruined Nigeria’s Refineries - THISDAYLIVE
There are times I read about this country and wonder if everything about Nigeria is a scam.
Nigerians...
