By Adewole Kehinde
“Great leaders are decisive, courageous, and willing to take bold action. Great leaders never seem outwardly uncertain or indecisive but display complete confidence, especially in times of adversity”. Pat Williams, Vince Lombardi
The Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC) is currently 77.4% complete, according to the federal government, which also declared that it has met its promise to finish the mechanical work necessary for the refinery’s Area 5 Plant rehabilitation.
In a statement, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited stated that as of December 15, 2023, 77.4% of the restoration project had been finished and 84.4% of the Area 5 Plant, a crucial part of the refinery, had been completed.
Even though construction on the 60,000-per-day refinery is still ongoing, the Federal Government and Nigerians are much relieved by the Port Refinery’s mechanical completion.
The refinery is a massive construction site with mountains of leftover metal, cable, and iron scraps from the plant. In phase one of the refineries, all 118 pumps have been erected and are operational. Additionally, more than 100 kilometres of cables have been put in. Every cable that was originally attached to the old facility has been replaced. Within the refinery complex, the columns are not vacant; rather, they are filled. Numerous pipes have been replaced, and new ones have been installed.
Nigeria will benefit from the revitalised factory for many years to come. It will provide value to Nigeria by giving it energy security, income, foreign exchange, and the means to feed its industry.
This indicates that a strong basis has been established for the refinery’s complete rehabilitation. Subsequent procedures that culminate in complete restoration and thereafter enable the processing of crude oil into Premium Motor Spirit, petrol, LPG, diesel, and household kerosene will be implemented.
After the plant’s mechanical completion, all the new installations will be tested before the entire facility is turned on, which might happen in February or March of the following year. Crude oil cannot be added to the system until that procedure is finished to start the refining of petroleum.
The nearly finished rehabilitation of the combined circle power plant, which will provide electricity to the refinery, is underway. Nevertheless, the old refinery is currently receiving power from another operational thermal power plant that is located underneath. Gas turbines provide the refinery with sufficient internal electricity, which is also exported for use by others outside the refinery. Thus, there is sufficient electricity to run the refinery, both new and old. Substation Two cables carry a single power source to the refinery. The old refinery consists of substation B, which serves as its central component, in addition to the following substations: A, B, C, D, and E. Everyone has gained energy.
The machinery in the new Port Harcourt Refinery that produces steam and air is presently undergoing maintenance. Since the plant is controlled by air, steam and water are necessary for it to function.
A significant number of the necessary power-hungry pumps have been turned on, in addition to the motor control stations and switch gear that are linked to Substation B. Every substation has brand-new machinery.
Contrary to what some would have the public believe, the New Port Harcourt Refinery, which has a capacity of roughly 150,000 barrels per day, is also undergoing rehabilitation and refurbishment. This is another intriguing development. The new facility should be operational by the end of 2024, according to statements made to Business Standards by both the contractor and refinery officials. The replacement of certain boilers and the removal and replacement of some pipes with integrity problems within the complex are happening concurrently.
Before marketers are asked to evacuate the gas to the market, it is held in new LPG storage facilities.
After inspection and certification, every storage tank used for white goods as well as other items is deemed suitable for the functions for which they are designed.
In his remarks, the GCEO of NNPC Ltd, Mele Kyari, described the achievement of mechanical completion as a fulfilment of a pledge he made to Nigerians to complete Phase One of the rehabilitation of Old Port Harcourt Refinery (Area 5) by December 31, 2023.
Kyari said his management owed the success story to the commitment of the team of engineers from the NNPC and the EPCIC contractors who worked extra hard to restore operations at the refinery.
He said the NNPC was determined to proceed from the latest milestone to complete the rehabilitation of all other refineries on schedule.
As of December 15, 2023, Kyari said the rehabilitation of Area 5 Plant, a key component of the Refinery was about 84.4% completed, while the entire rehabilitation project has attained about 77.4% completion.
“In our quest to ensure that this refinery is re-streamed to continue to deliver value to Nigerians, we made a promise that we will reach a mechanical completion of Phase One of the rehabilitation project by the end of December and get the other plants running in 2024. Today, we have kept those commitments,” Kyari said.
The Chairman of the NNPC Ltd Board, Pius Akinyelure, described the milestone as a historic achievement the board was proud of, particularly the commitment of the staff and management of the refinery to restore production at the plant.
Crude oil supply for Port Harcourt Refining Company Limited’s test operation has started, according to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited. The factory would serve 12 states, including Abia, Rivers, Delta, Akwa Ibom, and others, with refined Premium Motor Spirit, often known as petrol, and Automotive Gas Oil, also known as diesel.
The NNPCL said that the plant’s continuous testing would soon come to an end and that refined product commercial manufacturing would soon start as well.
The PHRC rehabilitation project, which costs about $1.5 billion, is an EPCIC project that covers the Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Installation, and Commissioning phases. For Area 5, the Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Installation have all been completed. The mechanical completion signifies the closure of the Construction and Installation phases.
More importantly, the milestone was achieved under an excellent Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) record, which stood at over 9.5 million manhours with zero Loss Time Injury (LTI).
Adewole Kehinde is the publisher of Swift Reporters and can be reached at 08166240846. E-mail: kennyadewole@gmail.com
