A consortium of South Korean investors is set to establish four 100,000-barrel capacity refineries in Nigeria, according to an announcement made by the Federal Government on Tuesday. Heineken Lokpobiri, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, revealed this development at the inaugural summit organized by the Crude Oil Refineries Owners Association of Nigeria in Lagos.
Lokpobiri emphasized the government’s commitment to creating an open environment for investors in the oil sector. He stated, “We encourage investors to build limited refineries by providing an open environment. A recent approval was granted to invite to Nigeria a consortium of investors from South Korea, which intends to establish four 100,000-barrel model refineries in four different locations in Nigeria.”
The minister highlighted the adoption of a public-private partnership model to stimulate investment in both the midstream and downstream segments of the oil and gas industry. He expressed optimism that these initiatives would lead to the establishment of more modular and mega refineries.
Moreover, Lokpobiri stated that the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission has developed guidelines to ensure transparency and access to feedstock for local refineries. He said, “We will ensure the deregulation of the downstream sector is 100 percent and put in place a necessary framework that will ease the impact on the poor masses.”
To promote self-sufficiency in petroleum production, the ministry has facilitated easier access to tax exemptions on refinery equipment imports. Lokpobiri also mentioned plans to use funds from the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) to support infrastructure development for refineries.
Additionally, the ministry aims to tackle issues related to crude oil theft and illegal refining by establishing an international emergency committee focused on home-grown solutions for in-country refining. This effort is part of a broader strategy to strengthen Nigeria’s position as Africa’s petroleum refining hub.
