The Senate has established an ad hoc committee tasked with investigating the extensive contracts awarded for the rehabilitation of state-owned refineries over a 13-year period, which reportedly consumed a whopping N11.35 trillion.
According to The PUNCH, the committee, headed by Senator Isah Jibrin Echocho, will not only scrutinize the rehabilitation contracts but will also conduct inquiries into the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, and the Bureau of Public Enterprises.
Their focus will be on determining the most effective approach to commercialize these state-owned refineries.
The Deputy Senate President, Jibrin Barau, presided over the plenary session and announced the committee’s formation. Notably, the committee comprises members with chairmanship of critical Senate committees, including Petroleum Resources (Downstream, Upstream, and Gas), Finance, Appropriation, and Public Accounts.
This committee has been granted a four-week timeframe to deliver its comprehensive report, and the decision to create it stems from a motion presented by Senator Sunday Karimi during the Tuesday plenary.
The sorry state of Nigeria’s four refineries in Kaduna, Warri, and Port Harcourt, despite numerous turnaround maintenance contracts, has raised serious concerns.
These refineries have not been productive for a substantial period, despite colossal financial investments. Senator Karimi’s motion highlighted the alarming figure of approximately N11.35 trillion spent from 2010 to date, not including additional expenditures in foreign currencies, which amounted to $592,976,050.00, £4,877,068.47, and €3,455,656.93, all dedicated to refinery renovations.
Additionally, he pointed out that the operating costs for these moribund refineries between 2010 and 2020 reached an estimated N4.8 trillion.
This news is of significant importance as it addresses the financial accountability of state-owned assets, particularly within the oil-producing nation of Nigeria.
In his contribution, Senator Adams Oshiomhole said, “The amount so far spent on the refineries can build brand new ones. Senators must take the issues with all seriousness it deserves.”
The Deputy Senate President stressed that “It is very important that a thorough investigation should be done to make sure that everything that we need to know is brought open to us. ”
“Who are those who are sabotaging the efforts of government? Anybody who has a hand, sabotaging the efforts of the government to bring these refineries into operation and those who have taken money that is meant to turn around these refineries must be brought to book. We must know them and decisive actions must be taken,” he said.
