Nigeria has in the past three years spent over $18.5 billion or N2.485 trillion on Petroleum products imported by contractors of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
Nigerian oil workers who allege this, have also frowned at the “Waste,” saying the amount could build six green field refineries to phase out importation as the main source of supply in a country that pumps our 2.5 million barrels of crude oil daily. The charges were made in Lagos yesterday as workers of NNPC and African Petroleum Plc addressed the media on plans to “recover” the Stallion House from Zenon Oil, and stop further attempt to divert the corporations shares held by its pension funds in African Petroleum.
In a joint statement, chairmen of NNPC chapters of Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), John Elibe and Ibibia Williams respectively, said the unions would stop at nothing to protect the nation�s downstream and other assets from appropriation by people close to the management of the corporation.
In a dialogue with journalists at the event, the union leaders blamed “rising spirals” in the cost of product importation on the insistence of NNPC group managing director Funso Kupolokun to continue with importation despite cheaper options.
One of the options, they claimed is the use of vessels and barges to lift products from the Warri refinery products from the Warri refinery for discharge at Lagos jetties.
The Warri refinery has remained shut due to pipeline outage following a spate of vandalism in the Niger Delta region.
Despite that, use of the refinery would be chapter than importing products from foreign refinery that bought crude oil from Nigeria”,
“A world-class refinery �the one BP operates in the U.S. currently costs about $4.0 billion to Guild; smaller ones cost between $2.5 billion and $3 billion. So you can imagine how many refineries we could have built with the amount,” he lamented.
On sale of NNPC�s assets and other non-fuel holdings, the unions expressed indignation, especially concerning stallion House going to Zennon Oil and the attempted sale of NNPC�s shares in AP to Global Fleet Group.
The workers allege that both Zonon owner Femi Otedola, Global Fleet, boss Jimoh Ibrahim are closely associated with Kupolokun.
But, in a telephone chat with Daily Champion last nigh, NNPC�s spokesman Levi Ajuomuma said that men were friends of the corporation.
“All I can say is that Jimoh is our friend, but NNPC�s shares in AP are still with the pension Fund,” Ajuonuma said.
Attempted deal to “quietly” sell of the shares to Ibrahim had attracted protests that caused President Olusegun Obasanjo to cancel the transaction at the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE).
NNPC�s workers also say their equity holding in Stallion House was undermined by the sale.
NNPC Pension Fund Ltd owns 49 per cent of the property which was auctioned to Zunnon for N2.2 billion.