Fresh details have emerged on the newly signed Memorandum of Understanding between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and two Chinese firms, Sanjiang Chemical Company Limited and Xingcheng (Fuzhou) Industrial Park Operation and Management Co. Ltd, for collaboration through a potential Technical Equity Partnership to support the completion and operation of the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries.

It was gathered exclusively on Sunday that the new arrangement is neither a contract award nor a fresh spending commitment, amid growing public scrutiny over the state-owned refineries. The clarification followed increasing public debate and speculation surrounding the agreement signed by NNPC with the Chinese companies as part of efforts to revamp Nigeria’s long-struggling refineries.

Last Monday, the national oil company announced the signing of a fresh agreement with the two Chinese firms in a move aimed at accelerating the delayed rehabilitation and commercial restart of Nigeria’s refineries, while also opening a new window for technical equity partnerships.

The agreement was executed in Jiaxing City, China, on April 30, 2026, by the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd, Bashir Bayo Ojulari, alongside the Chairman of Sanjiang Chemical Company, Guan Jianzhong, and the Chairman of Xingcheng Industrial Park, Bill Bi.

According to the national oil company, the proposed arrangement would also involve refinery expansion, petrochemical integration, and the development of gas-based industrial hubs around the facilities.

However, the development has generated widespread public engagement and intensified scrutiny over the future of Nigeria’s refineries, with industry experts, energy stakeholders, and concerned citizens raising questions about transparency, accountability, funding structures, and the long-term commercial viability of the proposed partnership.

A senior company official, who spoke with our correspondent in Abuja on Sunday on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, sought to dispel what he described as “false narratives” surrounding the deal, explaining that the understanding signed with the Chinese firms was merely a preliminary framework for exploring possible areas of collaboration.

The official stressed that no financial commitment had been made by NNPC and that no government funds would be deployed for refinery rehabilitation under the arrangement.

According to the official, the agreement only establishes a preliminary framework for discussions on possible areas of collaboration involving financing, operations, maintenance support, petrochemical development, and gas-based industrial projects.

The official said, “It is important to clarify, and one of the first things to clarify is that it is not an agreement or a financial agreement. It is an understanding with the two parties who are interested in exploring opportunities to revamp and expand the capacities of the refinery.

“The Memorandum of Understanding is a preliminary, non-binding agreement that reflects the mutual intention of the parties to explore areas of collaboration and jointly develop a framework for partnership. The scope of discussions includes financing, support for ongoing projects, operations and maintenance, potential expansion into petrochemicals, and other gas-based industrial initiatives.

“What we signed is not an award of contract. It does not commit NNPC Limited to any fresh rehabilitation expenditure. That point must be made very clear because a lot of false narratives have emerged suggesting that the company has already committed huge sums or entered another spending cycle on the refineries. That is completely incorrect.”

The official said he would have shared a copy of the agreement to demonstrate the company’s careful and transparent handling of the understanding, but was constrained by contractual obligations.

The source further disclosed that discussions under the understanding would cover financing structures, support for ongoing projects, operations and maintenance arrangements, petrochemical opportunities, and other gas-based industrial initiatives.

He added that the long-term objective would be to evaluate the possibility of creating an Incorporated Joint Venture arrangement with strategic investors capable of bringing both technical and financial capacity.

“The long-term objective is to evaluate the possibility of establishing an Incorporated Joint Venture arrangement. However, the immediate next step is for both parties to work together to define the detailed commercial, technical, and operational framework that could guide any future partnership,” he said.

The official acknowledged concerns raised by Nigerians regarding accountability and the huge sums previously spent on refinery rehabilitation over the years, with little visible improvement in operations.

However, he maintained that under the current leadership of the company, no fresh refinery rehabilitation programme had been approved since 2025. “The concerns regarding accountability, value assurance, and historical spending associated with the NNPC refineries are acknowledged. Nigerians have genuine concerns because of what has happened in the past.

“But it is important to state clearly that since 2025, NNPC Limited has not committed to, nor undertaken, any new refinery rehabilitation or upgrade programme.

“In the last year under the current leadership, no kobo has been spent on rehabilitation of the refineries, and there is no plan to commit money directly from the company’s purse into another round of spending without commercially viable partnerships,” the official stated.

On concerns that taxpayers’ money could again be deployed to fund refinery projects, the official reiterated that the company’s structure under the Petroleum Industry Act no longer allows reliance on government funding.

“The company is no longer a government agency and cannot get funding from the government. So no amount of government funds will be used for this arrangement. We only signed an understanding. The company has also tried to be transparent by making an announcement on it publicly, which shows our commitment to openness and accountability to Nigerians,” he added.

According to the official, the company’s current strategy is focused on attracting investors and technical partners willing to share risks while helping to return the refineries to sustainable commercial operations.

“Our current approach is guided by commercial prudence, sustainability, and long-term value creation. The strategic focus is to return the refineries to sustainable and profitable operations through partners that are willing to bring capital, technical expertise, operational capacity, and shared commercial risk as equity partners.

“As a commercially driven energy company operating under the Petroleum Industry Act, NNPC Limited is focused on protecting value, minimising direct funding exposure, and ensuring that any future refinery development is based on commercially viable partnership structures rather than continued dependence on government spending,” the official said.

The clarification comes amid renewed public attention on Nigeria’s refineries, including the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna plants, which have gulped $2.39bn (over N3.2tn) in rehabilitation costs over the years despite prolonged operational challenges.

The PUNCH reports that the Federal Government had spent $2.39bn under the previous administration to rehabilitate the two refineries. Only the Port Harcourt refinery was said to have been completed, with production starting in November 2024. However, it was shut down on May 24, 2025, amid controversy over its output.

In March 2021, the Federal Executive Council approved the sum of $1.5bn for the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt refinery plant, which operates two refineries: the old plant with a capacity of 60,000 barrels per stream day and a new facility with 150,000 barrels per stream day, bringing the refinery’s combined crude processing capacity to 210,000 barrels per stream day.

The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, alongside stakeholders in the education, financial, and development sectors, has urged Nigerians to embrace skills acquisition and vocational empowerment, while commending FirstBank for its investment in youth- and women-focused capacity development initiatives across the country.

This was disclosed in a Sunday statement from the partners. Speaking at the graduation ceremony of 50 women from a vocational and entrepreneurship training programme sponsored by FirstBank Nigeria Limited in partnership with the African Projects Development Centre in Gwagwalada, Abuja, a representative of the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Saratu Salawu, described skill acquisition as a critical tool for addressing unemployment, poverty, and economic inequality in the country.

She urged the graduates to make productive use of the skills acquired. “Do not sit back and wait for someone to arrange a job for you.

It is important to have something meaningful you can do for yourself and your community,” she said

Mrs Nkechi Mathew, who represented the pioneer Mandate Secretary of the Women Affairs Secretariat of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, Adedayo Benjamins-Laniyi, described the graduation as evidence that Nigerian women are prepared to contribute meaningfully to economic development.

Salawu, Mathew, and other participants commended the “You First Fashionistas Training Programme” by FirstBank and APDC, which was launched to equip participants with practical skills in fashion design, hair styling, and makeup artistry as part of efforts to tackle youth unemployment and encourage entrepreneurship in Nigeria’s creative and beauty industries.

The training began on September 16, 2025, and is expected to run until December 18, 2026, culminating in a fashion fair in 2027.

According to FirstBank, the initiative is expected to support economic growth by equipping beneficiaries with practical skills that enable them to create products, earn income, and improve their livelihoods.

The bank said participants had already begun producing clothes and other creative items for commercial purposes, adding that the programme was designed to move women into the active economy through income-generating skills in fashion, hair styling, and makeup artistry.

The bank urged the graduates to become job creators rather than job seekers.

FirstBank added that the partnership with APDC aims to empower 200 women within one year through four cohorts of 50 participants each, describing the initiative as part of its commitment to sustainable economic empowerment and corporate social responsibility.

Speaking at the event, APDC Managing Director, Chiji Ojukwu, said the organisation established its vocational and entrepreneurship programmes to address rising youth and women unemployment in Nigeria.

He disclosed that APDC had trained about 10,000 youths in various sectors over the past eight years, with its fashion and beauty programme benefiting nearly 500 women across nine cohorts.

Ojukwu said the initiative was designed to help beneficiaries become self-reliant business owners and employers, while revealing plans for a fashion fair to showcase trainees’ products and services to investors and customers.

The Central Bank of Nigeria has urged state governments to reduce their reliance on overdrafts and short-term borrowing, warning that reckless fiscal behaviour at the sub-national level could undermine the country’s transition to an inflation-targeting monetary policy framework.

This was contained in a press statement issued by the CBN on Sunday following an engagement with sub-national stakeholders facilitated through the Nigerian Governors’ Forum Secretariat in Abuja.

According to the statement, the Deputy Governor in charge of the Economic Policy Directorate, Dr Muhammad Abdullahi, said state governments must adopt stricter fiscal discipline to support price stability and ongoing macroeconomic reforms.

“He urged states to reduce reliance on overdrafts and short-term financing, ensure that borrowing decisions align with debt sustainability thresholds, improve budget realism and revenue forecasting, prioritise expenditure, and better synchronise fiscal calendars with prevailing macroeconomic conditions,” the statement said.

Abdullahi described the transition to inflation targeting as a shift towards a more transparent, rule-based, and forward-looking monetary framework that requires close collaboration between the central bank and state authorities.

According to him, while the CBN remains responsible for monetary policy decisions aimed at controlling inflation, fiscal actions by state governments also significantly influence inflation outcomes in a federal system like Nigeria’s.

He warned that inflation targeting largely depends on managing economic expectations, stressing that expansionary fiscal activities by states could weaken the effectiveness of monetary policy signals.

The deputy governor noted that state governments influence inflation through borrowing decisions, debt accumulation, spending patterns, wage bills, capital project execution, salary arrears, contractor financing, and cash management practices linked to Federation Account Allocation Committee receipts.

“In an inflation targeting regime, persistent, unpredictable or expansionary fiscal behaviour at the sub-national level can significantly undermine price stability,” Abdullahi said.

He added that the absence of fiscal dominance, where governments pressure the central bank to monetise deficits, remains a major condition for successful inflation targeting, noting that the principle applies to both federal and state governments.

Abdullahi further outlined four responsibilities expected of state governments under the inflation-targeting framework, including maintaining fiscal discipline and predictability, pursuing responsible borrowing, improving coordination on cash and debt management, and strengthening internally generated revenue mobilisation.

He warned that excessive supplementary budgets, unplanned spending, and unsustainable debt accumulation could trigger liquidity shocks and worsen inflationary pressures.

The deputy governor stressed that inflation targeting should be seen as a collective national commitment aimed at achieving long-term stability, economic credibility, and sustainable growth.

Also speaking, the Director of the Monetary Policy Department, Dr Victor Oboh, described inflation targeting as a “win-win framework” capable of benefiting households, businesses, and governments by improving policy credibility and reducing macroeconomic uncertainty.

Oboh stated that price stability could not be achieved through monetary policy alone, especially in a federal system where state spending, borrowing, and cash flow decisions directly affect inflation and liquidity conditions.

According to him, the engagement was organised to deepen collaboration and mutual understanding between the CBN and state governments regarding the expectations and coordination required for the successful implementation of inflation targeting.

Delivering a goodwill message on behalf of the Director-General of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum, Dr Abdullateef Shittu, the Executive Director of Policy, Strategy and Research at the forum, Prof Olalekan Yunusa, commended the CBN for involving sub-national authorities early in the transition process.

He said the move from monetary targeting to inflation targeting reflected a deliberate commitment to price stability, adding that sustainable macroeconomic stability required disciplined coordination across all tiers of government.

The engagement attracted participants from over 20 states, including commissioners of finance and economic planning, accountants-general, permanent secretaries, statisticians-general, and directors, who reaffirmed support for the CBN’s reform agenda and transition to inflation targeting.

The PUNCH earlier reported that the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory’s debt rose to nearly $5.7bn in fresh external loans in 2025, driving a year-on-year surge in subnational foreign debt despite higher inflows from Federation Account Allocation Committee disbursements.

Data from the Debt Management Office indicated that the combined external debt stock of the 36 states and the FCT increased from $4.80bn as of December 31, 2024, to $5.68bn as of December 31, 2025, reflecting a net increase of $884.66m, or 18.43 per cent year-on-year.

A breakdown of the data showed that 33 out of the 37 subnational entities recorded increases in their external debt positions during the period under review, representing 89.19 per cent of the total, while only four states posted declines, accounting for 10.81 per cent.

The scale of the increase shows a continued reliance on external financing by state governments amid fiscal pressures, infrastructure demands, and rising FAAC revenues.