Reps propose privatisation of petroleum refineries
The House of Representatives is considering the privatisation of the four national petroleum refineries as one of the strategies to enhance the performance of the oil and gas sector.
Chairman, House Committee on Petroleum Upstream, Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere dropped the hint yesterday during the committee’s visit to the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) in Abuja.
According to him, the proposal is predicated on the fact that the rehabilitation of the refineries has gulped funds that would have been sufficient to build three new ones.
He insisted that privatising the refineries would make them more beneficial to the citizenry since they would provide refined petroleum products domestically.
“Let me also propose to you one of the things our committee is going to be championing in the days ahead which is the privatisation of some of our nation’s refineries.
“You will agree with me that for decades we have been on these refineries issue.
“And we have spent money that if they use it to build new refineries we would have built two or three. And then we keep maintaining them over time.
“It is better that these refineries are privatised to make them efficient so that Nigerians can get the benefits they require in refining our products domestically,” Ugochinyere said.
He commended NEITI Executive Secretary, Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, for the reforms he has been championing in the extractive industries for the benefit of Nigerians.
He added that NEITI has taken a commendable position by seeking more investments in the downstream as it has to do with the building of more private refineries.
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According to him, the establishment of private refineries would help to create more jobs, infrastructure, and result in an efficient and transparent oil industry.
He said NEITI needs more funding in terms of budgetary allocation.
