JUST IN: Warri Refinery Begins Operations, Processing 125,000 Barrels Per Day – NNPCL CEO Mele Kyari

The Warri Refining & Petrochemicals Company (WRPC), located in Warri, Delta State, has officially begun operations, processing 125,000 barrels per day. The announcement was made by Mele Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), during a tour of the facility on Monday.

Kyari, addressing the team before the tour, highlighted the significance of the project, emphasizing that while the refinery is not yet fully complete, it is operational. “Many people think these things are not real. They think real things are not possible in this country. We want you to see that this is real,” Kyari stated.

The tour was attended by key officials, including Farouk Ahmen, the CEO of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA). The facility, located in Ekpan, Uwvie, and Ubeji, Warri, also produces significant quantities of petrochemicals, including 13,000 million tons per annum (MTA) of polypropylene and 18,000 MTA of carbon black.

Commissioned in 1978 and managed by NNPCL, the refinery was initially designed to serve the southern and southwestern markets of Nigeria. The plant was expected to reach mechanical completion by the first quarter of 2024, according to NNPCL spokesperson Olufemi Soneye.