In this Article we will be talking about How Shell Delivers 475,000 Barrels of Oil to Port Harcourt Refinery Ahead Of Restart And Future Plans.
Shell Plc’s Nigeria unit said on Friday Feb 9, it has resumed supply of crude oil from its Bonny export terminal to the state-owned refinery in Port Harcourt which is expected to start operations in the first quarter of this year. The Port Harcourt Refinery, one of Nigeria’s four state-owned refineries, has been plagued by years of neglect and disrepair. Its rehabilitation, which began in 2019, aimed to restore its capacity to process 210,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
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A total of 475,000 barrels of oil was delivered to the Port Harcourt refinery on January 18, Shell’s Bonny oil terminal manager Osita Nnajiofor said in an emailed statement. The Bonny Oil & Gas Terminal (BOGT), operated by Shell, completed the delivery in January 2024. Accoding to Bamidele Odugbesan, Shell’s spokesman who said the oil deliveries to the refinery were made this week. This move is a signal for a potential game-changer for the Nigerian economy, aiming to boost domestic fuel production and reduce reliance on imported products.
Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria and Managing Director, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, Dr Osagie Okunbor, had said, “Teams from BOGT and PHRC worked through intensive preparations, collaboration, and dedication to make the project successful. This is indeed a significant step in the nation’s renewed efforts to utilize key infrastructures to assure the steady supply of products from the refining company to the Nigerian market.”
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Also, the Bonny Terminal Installation Manager, Osita Nnajiofor, was quoted as saying that before implementing the supplies of the product to the refining company, the project teams first assured the integrity of pipelines relevant to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited subsidiaries, as well as the integrity and maintenance activities on the BOGT refinery export pumps, which had been shut down for an extended period.
Nnajiofor explained, “These actions resulted in the successful and safe completion of the refinery supply with no harm to people, environment, or equipment. The NNPC at the turn of the year said it planned to complete test runs at the refinery by the end of January in a major step towards resuming operations five years after the plant was shut down.