Heineken Lokpobiri, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), on Tuesday denied flatly ever directing the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to halt the operation of its refineries and instead focus solely on equity participation in other refineries, stating that the account that was credited to him was false.

In a statement personally signed he personally signed the Minister maintained that the claims attributed to Kamoru Busari, Director of Upstream in the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, who represented him at a recent conference in Lagos, were false and did not reflect his position or that of the Federal Government.

His words: “My attention has been drawn to statements attributed to Engr. Kamoru Busari, Director of Upstream in the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, who represented me at a recent conference in Lagos. I wish to categorically state that the claim that I directed the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to stop running its own refineries and focus solely on equity participation in other refineries is false.

“The NNPCL is an independent entity governed under the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources does not control or run its operations. It is important to clarify that NNPCL is a company governed under CAMA, with a functional board and management. The Ministry of Petroleum Resources does not control or run NNPCL, as it operates independently like any corporate entity.”

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Reaffirming his commitment to supporting the growth and independence of NNPCL, ensuring that its operations are in line with international standards for efficiency, transparency, and profitability, Lokpobiri reiterated FG’s commitment to promoting in-country refining and supporting the independence of companies operating in the oil and gas sector, including the NNPCL, adding that the oil and gas sector is fully deregulated, and the government only provides strategic guidance, while companies are encouraged to follow global best practices.

“The Nigerian government remains committed to promoting in-country refining. We encourage companies, including NNPCL, to operate independently and follow global best practices. While we provide strategic guidance, we do not interfere directly in the operations of these companies,” the minister noted.

They’re listening to me now. Everybody is listening to me saying I’m not in support of violence. Nobody in his right senses will support what is going on in the state,” were the words with which Nyesom Wike, former governor, exculpated himself and his supporters from the mayhem which engulfed various parts of Rivers State on Monday.

Wike, now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, who was a guest of Politics Today, a public affairs programme on Channels Television, however told his host that whoever was in search of lasting peace in the state should tell Siminalaye Fubara to obey court orders, one of which barred him from conducting last Saturday’s local government election in the state.

The former governor, who has been fingered in the crisis, which has engulfed the state since October last year, including the alleged attempt impeach Fubara, by a group of House of Assembly members in the state, flatly denied any sort of involvement in the crisis, adding that he decided to leave the governor alone to his devices to run the state in the manner he wished.

Against the backdrop of Fubara’s revelation on how he had continued to beg him over the matter, including kneeling before him to allow him a breather, Wike said such a thing never happened, wondering what could cause the governor to kneel, saying the issue was all about he (Fubara’s) decision to disobey President Tinubu.

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“What did he kneel down to me for? That’s the question you should be asking me. First of all I deny it happened. Never! He never knelt down for me, why should he kneel down? What offence did he commit? Did he commit an offence to kneel down? If he knelt down, what did he kneel down for? It is not correct.

“The point I’m making is about the intervention by Mr. President. And I said, the President cannot, as the father of the nation, Mr. President cannot come and call you and say, look, this should be done, this should be done. We said okay, Mr. President, we’re going to comply and we did comply. And then you started playing games. And we said, okay, if that is the case, we’re out of it.”

Reacting to Monday’s violence, which led to the burning down of four local government secretariats in the state Wike, who attributed it to the propensity for Nigerians to always ignore the rule of law, insisted that the people must always obey court orders, adding that Fubara and his supporters had gotten up to 31 judgements from the Rivers State judiciary, which were obeyed without resorting to self-help.

“The problem is that Nigeria is a country where anything goes and anybody can do anything and go scot-free. This country is a country where anybody can do anything and go free. You fall back to social media, to carry blackmail, to carry propaganda without telling people this is what is happening.”

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The prospect of Nigeria hitherto a net importer of refined petroleum to becoming a net exporter is at its doorstep starting with the establishment of the 650 barrels day capacity Dangote Refinery, the first privately-owned facility in Nigeria and the first to be established in any African country in the last 35 years.

Aliko Dangote, the President of Dangote Group, who made this disclosure on Tuesday, told participants at the Crude Oil Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria (CORAN) Summit in Lagos, that it was lamentable that the Nigerian government was not showing enough interest in upgrading the refining prospects of the oil sector, adding, for instance that his facility, which cost a whopping $20billion was shouldered by him alone without government assistance.

At Summit with the theme: Making Nigeria a Net Exporter of Petroleum Products, the African richest man, who was represented by Ahmed Mansur, Managing Director of the Dangote Group, said that there was a need for investor incentives to realise the country’s vision of becoming a refining hub, adding that it was important to ensure sufficient feedstock availability.

“It is important to ensure feedstock availability. There must be an end to mortgaging crude oil. It is unfortunate that while countries like Norway are investing oil proceeds into a future fund, we in Africa are spending our future earnings. There is need for prioritising the implementation of domestic crude supply obligations and expanding crude oil production capacity to meet the demands of new refining facilities.

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Commending President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for highlighting the government’s active steps to accelerate International Oil Companies (IOC) divestments and other initiatives, Dangote regretted that despite being Africa’s largest crude oil producer, Nigeria had long relied on imports to meet its refined petroleum product needs.

He said: “Nigeria is poised to transition from a “net importer” to a “net exporter” of refined products, positioning itself as a significant player in global downstream trade. This impending transformation is indicative of our progress as an industry and as a nation. We owe a debt of gratitude to President Tinubu for his unwavering support throughout this journey.”

Stretching his expectation to the African continent as a whole, which he said had a lot of opportunities, he contended that the continent of imports had hit about three million barrels of petroleum products daily, with half of that coming from coastal countries, noting that these same countries produced over 3.4 million barrels of crude oil daily, with imports primarily sourced from Europe, Russia, and other regions.

Hear him: “In 2023 alone, this trade was estimated at approximately 17 billion dollars. However, these markets will be better served from Nigeria, reducing logistics costs and allowing countries to purchase their petroleum product requirements just in time. Nigeria and Africa can achieve self-sufficiency in petroleum products, retaining all economic value locally.

“We have succeeded in cement production, and we can certainly replicate that success in petroleum refining. The Dangote Refinery already produces sufficient diesel and jet fuel to meet Nigeria’s needs and is ramping up production of PMS to meet domestic demand. The refinery has also begun exporting products to markets in Europe, Brazil, the UK, the USA, Singapore, and South Korea.

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“The global developments in the petroleum sector, particularly in Europe, are likely to disrupt traditional trade flows for refined products in Africa. Nigeria is uniquely positioned to capitalize on these opportunities and become a formidable player in the global oil industry. As a vibrant exporter of refined products, Nigeria stands to improve its trade balance and generate much-needed foreign currency. There is no doubt about Nigeria’s potential as a refining hub; let’s work together to make it a reality.”