The Federal Government has said it is targeting local refining of over 2.555 billion barrels of crude oil worth over N120trn in the next five years.

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development Monitoring Board, Simbi Wabote, made the disclosure on Monday during an interview with our correspondent on the sidelines of the ongoing Nigerian Content Midstream-Downstream Oil and Gas Summit 2022, organized by the board in Lagos.

According to him, a combined refining capacity of more than 1.4million barrels per day is expected from the rehabilitation of the existing four national refineries, co-location of new refineries, construction of greenfield refineries, and construction of modular refineries as part the Ministry of Petroleum Resources’refining roadmap in the next five years.

The refining of 1.4million barrels per day is approximately 2.555billion barrels in five years.

The Brent at 5:19pm Nigerian time on Monday was sold at $113.11 on the international market.

If exported, the 2.555billion barrels of crude oil could fetch the country about $289bn or N120trn in five years.

“The Ministry of Petroleum Resources under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari has rolled out the Refining Roadmap with emphasis on rehabilitation of the existing four national refineries, co-location of new refineries, construction of greenfield refineries and construction of modular refineries. From all of these, the government expects more than 1.4million barrels per day within the next five years,” he said.

According to Wabote, about 400,000bpd is expected from the rehabilitation of the NNPC refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna, using a target performance of not less than 90 per cent of nameplate capacity.

The greenfield element of the roadmap covers the mechanically complete 650,000bpd Dangote Refinery in Lagos, and the 200,000bpd BUA Refinery in Akwa Ibom State.

In the aspect of modular refineries, he said the NCDMB is serving as a catalyst to enhance the realisation of the refining roadmap.

“Our partnership with Waltersmith resulted in the delivery of the 5,000barrels per day modular refinery in Imo State currently in operations”, he said.

Next in view, he said, is the 2,500 barrels per day Duport Modular Refinery located in Edo State due for inauguration this year.

Others under construction are the 2,000 barrels per day Atlantic Refinery and the 12,000 barrels/day Azikel Hydro-skimming Refinery both in Bayelsa State.

The NCDMB boss said the board, in partnership with the NNPC, is set to construct a 50,000 liters petroleum products terminal in Brass Island to support the storage and distribution of white products in the coastal states of the country.

Apart from the modular refineries, he said the board was also in partnership with Bunorr Integrated Energy Limited for the establishment of 48,000 litres/day Base Oil Production Facility (via recycling of used engine oil) in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, adding that clean diesel was also one of the by-products of the processing plant which due for inauguration before year-end.

He said construction activities were ongoing at the Eraskon Lube Oil factory in Gbarain, Bayelsa State sequel to the board’s partnership for the establishment of a 64,000liters/day lubricating oils blending plant.

“Factory acceptance test is ongoing for the major equipment prior to site installation. The Eraskon brand of engine oil, gear oil, hydraulic fluids, and other grades of lubricants is set to address the lubricants needs in the catchment states of Bayelsa, Rivers, Imo, Delta, and beyond ‘’, he said.

However, a communication consultant in The Adjunct Faculty of the School of Media and Communications, Pan Atlantic University, Lagos, Chido Nwakama, faulted the feasibility of the target.

According to him, the Federal Government should not include the moribund four refineries in the target.

“The target does not make sense at all. Those refineries do not work and produce anything; rather, we are supposedly spending billions to keep them open. So they are playing on our intelligence whenever they throw out these figures, and I wonder where they get the guts to lie to us so openly. They insult our intelligence by telling us that refineries that are not working have possible production capacity”.

According to him, the four refineries have no capacity of any kind, and Nigeria should rather build new ones.