NNPC Limited announced on Friday that the recently re-commissioned Warri Refinery has been temporarily shut down for routine maintenance and is expected to resume operations soon.
In a statement issued by the company’s Chief Communications Officer, Mr. Olufemi Soneye, it was confirmed that there was no explosion at the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company (WRPC), calling any reports to the contrary “completely false.”
Soneye explained, “On January 25, 2025, operations at WRPC Area 1 were intentionally reduced to carry out necessary maintenance on key equipment, including field instruments that were affecting the refinery’s ability to operate smoothly.” He highlighted that the maintenance is vital to ensuring the continued production of high-quality finished and intermediate products, especially Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and Kerosene (Kero).
“The routine maintenance is progressing as planned, and Area 1 will be back in operation in the next few days,” he said. “Despite the ongoing work, AGO loading has continued at an average of eight trucks per day for the past 11 days, with sufficient supply to support current truck load-out operations.”
NNPC Ltd assured that it remains committed to providing an uninterrupted supply of products and thanked stakeholders for their patience and cooperation during the maintenance process.
The 125,000 barrels per day refinery was re-commissioned just before the new year, after more than a decade of inactivity, with NNPC reporting it is now running at 60 percent capacity. In August 2021, the Federal Executive Council approved a $1.48 billion contract for the rehabilitation of both the Warri and Kaduna refineries.
