The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has confirmed that the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company (WRPC) has resumed partial operations after almost ten years of inactivity.
The refinery, which had been shut down since 2015 for extensive repairs, began refining crude oil again last Saturday at its Area 1 plant.
This development follows the recent restart of the 60,000-barrel-per-day Port Harcourt Refinery a month earlier.
NNPCL’s Group CEO, Mele Kyari, made the announcement during a tour of the Warri facility on Monday, marking a key milestone in Nigeria’s efforts to revive its local refineries.
In a video shared by Channels TV, Kyari, accompanied by other officials including Farouk Ahmed, the CEO of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, expressed optimism about the progress made.
While acknowledging that repairs at the refinery were not yet fully complete, Kyari emphasized that refining activities had already begun.
He added, “We are showing you our plant. It is operational, even though it’s not fully finished. We want to demonstrate that this is real and achievable. Many people doubt the possibility of such progress in the country, but we are proving it here today.”
