“NNPC now produces five million litres of kerosene daily” – Managing Director
Nigerian oil sector has decided to invest more by producing a large quantity of kerosene for the easy consumption of the citizens. However, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) says its three refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna now produce five million litres of Dual Purpose Kerosene (DPK), popularly known as kerosene daily.
A statement by the Group General Manager, Group, Public Affairs Division, Mr Ndu Ughamadu, on Sunday stated that the Group Managing Director of the NNPC, Dr Maikanti Baru, said this at a two-day Investigative Public Hearing of the House of Representative Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream):
“This, according to it, represents more than 60 percent of the national daily consumption requirement of eight million litres. NNPC now produces five million litres of kerosene daily.”
In addition, the GMD, who was represented by the Chief Operating Officer, Downstream, Mr Henry Ikem Obih, said the remaining three million litres of kerosene required daily was being imported by private petroleum products marketers. This is because the sector could only produce that amount locally which is highly commendable:
“The NNPC ensures that the entire refining output in Nigeria through its refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna and any products imported by it to make up for market supply-shortfalls meet the specifications of the Nigerian Institute of Standard (NIS) and Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON).”
He further assured that the NNPC will not compromise safety and quality in its products and processes, hence all the depots in the country had laboratories for quality checks to ensure the safety of consumers. Also, he added that the company’s major objective is to ensure safety use and delivery of petroleum products to the targeted citizens.
similarly, he explained that in keeping up with its promised commitment to the safety of consumers, the corporation investigated the recent incident of kerosene explosion in Calabar and could not trace the truck that delivered the adulterated product in any of its depots’ loading schedule. The investigation confirmed that the explosed petroleum product had no link with the cooperation.
In order to voice out for support, the NNPC leader called on relevant authorities to empower the Department of Petroleum Resources to carry out its responsibilities more diligently by ensuring that petroleum products imported by marketers meet the required quality and safety standards as NNPC cannot guarantee the quality of products imported by other market players. He also explained that the safety of the people is more important and should be ensured:
“The quality of kerosene being sold to the general public required regular inspection to ensure that it meets health, safety, environment and quality standards at all times to avert any regulatory breaches or threat to lives and properties of the general public and consumers of the products.”
NNPC has received commendations from Nigerians for ensuring quality petroleum products. The cooperation has worked really hard to meet up with the daily required kerosene delivery. It has also called on the government for support stating that supports will aid more progress.