Today, the numbered of licensed refineries in Nigeria are numbered up to five. The Nigerian government manages four through the auspices of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation. The refineries in Nigeria have the capacity of refining more than 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily. Today, these refineries are mostly inefficient and produce a very meagre output of 70,000 barrels daily.
List of Nigerian refineries
Here is the list of major refineries in Nigeria:
- Warri Refinery and Petrochemical Plant
- New Port Harcourt Refinery
- Kaduna Refinery
- Niger Delta Petroleum Resources Refinery
- The Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals Company Refinery
Warri Refinery
The Warri Refinery is noted to be the first fully-owned refinery by the Nigerian government. It was approved with much fanfare in 1978. The original plan was for the refinery to produce up to 100,000 barrels of crude oil daily. Nine years later, the capacity of crude oil production increased to 125,000 BPD (barrels per day). Due to frequent shutdowns and high cost of running, the refinery only operates at 30% capacity.
Read: List of International Airports in Nigeria
New Port Harcourt Refinery
The New Port Harcourt refinery was built in 1989 and commissioned in 1991 with a capacity to produce 150,000 barrel per day. This is different from the old Port Harcourt refinery which was built in 1965, with an installed capacity of 65,000 barrels per day. It is sited at the riverine town of Eleme.
Kaduna Refinery
The Kaduna refinery was launched in 1983, with an installed capacity of close to 130,000 BPD. The refinery plant is managed by Kaduna Refining and Petrochemicals (KRPC) Limited.
According to NNPC, the production rate of the Kaduna refinery.
No. |
Product |
Production Rate |
| 1 | PMS | 3,857 MT/DAY |
| 2 | KEROSENE | 1,686 MT/DAY |
| 3 | AGO [DIESEL] | 3,000 MT/DAY |
| 4 | ASPHALT | 1,796 MT/DAY |
| 5 | LAB | 91 MT/DAY |
| 6 | BASE OILS | 657 MT/DAY |
| 7 | LPG | 620 MT/DAY |
| 8 | FUEL | 2,100 MT/DAY |
Niger Delta Petroleum Resources Refinery
In 2010, the Niger Delta Petroleum Resources commissioned the first private refinery in Nigeria. The refinery extracts diesel or automotive gas oil from crude oil in the Ogbele field, Rivers state. It has a capacity of 1000 barrel per day.
Read: Lists of 17 Major Mineral Resources in Nigeria
The Indorama Eleme Petrochemical Plants
Located in Eleme, River states, this plant is owned by Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals Company Limited (IEPL). It was given to them in the year 2006 through a privatisation program by the NNPC. it produces 22,000 tonnes per annum (TPA) Butene-1, 270,000 TPA Polyethylene, and 80,000 TPA Polypropylene.
List of private refineries in Nigeria (ongoing construction or near completion)
| S/N | COMPANY | PLANT LOCATION | LICENSE ISSUED | CAPACITY (BPSD) | LICENSE STATUS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Niger Delta Petroleum Resources (NDPR) | Ogbelle, Rivers State | Licence to Operate (LTO) | 1000 | Plant is Operational |
| 2 | Amakpe International Refinery | Eket Akwa Ibom State | Approval to Construct (ATC) | 12000 | Process unit fabricated and awaiting shipment and installation. |
| 3 | Resource Petroleum & Petrochemicals Inc. | Ibeno, Akwa Ibom State | Approval to Construct (ATC) | 100000 | Licence is valid. The plant is yet to be installed |
| 4 | Kainji Resources Limited | Oguta, Imo State | Licence to Establish (LTE) | 24000 | Licences issued in July 2013 |
| 5 | Omega Butler Refineries Nigeria | Ikpokiri, Rivers State | Licence to Establish (LTE) | 20000 | Licences issued in July 2013 |
| 6 | Dangote Industries Limited | Lekki Free Trade Zone, Lagos | Licence to Establish (LTE) | 500000 | Licences issued in September 2014 |
