Today, the number of licensed refineries in Nigeria is up to five. The Nigerian government manages four through the auspices of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.
The refineries in Nigeria have the capacity to refine more than 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily. Today, these refineries are mostly inefficient and produce a very light 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
- Dangote Refinery
Warri Refinery
The Warri Refinery is 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, crude oil production capacity increased to 125,000 BPD (barrels per day).
Due to frequent shutdowns and the high cost of running, the refinery only operates at 30% capacity.
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New Port Harcourt Refinery
The New Port Harcourt refinery was built in 1989 and commissioned in 1991 with a capacity to produce 150,000 barrels per day.
This is different from the old Port Harcourt refinery built-in 1965, with an installed capacity of 65,000 barrels per day. It is situated in the riverine town of Eleme.
Kaduna Refinery
The Kaduna refinery was launched in 1983, with an installed capacity of nearly 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 from crude oil in the Ogbele field, Rivers state. It has a capacity of 1000 barrels 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 2006 through a privatization program by the NNPC. it produces 22,000 tonnes per annum (TPA) Butene-1, 270,000 TPA Polyethylene, and 80,000 TPA Polypropylene.
Dangote Oil Refinery
Dangote Oil Refinery is a six hundred thousand barrels per day (BPD) refinery project launched in 2023 at Lekki Free Zone close to Lagos, Nigeria. It is Africa’s largest crude oil refinery and the world’s largest single-train facility.
The Pipeline Technology at Dangote Petroleum Refinery ranks as the biggest ever built in the world, with 1,100 km capable of carrying 3 Billion Standard Cubic feet of gas every day. The Refinery by itself features a 435MW Power Plant, which is capable to cater for the entire power demand of Ibadan DisCo.
The Refinery will supply the entire Nigerian demand for all petroleum products and also have an excess of all of these products for exportation. Dangote Petroleum Refinery is a multi-billion dollar venture that will result in an opportunity for $21 Billion per year of Nigerian Crude. It was built to handle Nigerian crude with the capacity to also deal with other crudes.
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 | License 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 | The license is valid. The plant is yet to be installed |
4 | Kainji Resources Limited | Oguta, Imo State | License to Establish (LTE) | 24000 | Licenses issued in July 2013 |
5 | Omega Butler Refineries Nigeria | Ikpokiri, Rivers State | License to Establish (LTE) | 20000 | Licenses issued in July 2013 |
6 | Dangote Industries Limited | Lekki Free Trade Zone, Lagos | License to Establish (LTE) | 500000 | Licenses issued in September 2014 |
Purpose of refinery
The word “crude oil” refers to oil that has not been refined. It is an important material in today’s world. Oil has a wide range of applications, and refining allows for many of them.
The Most Important Products Produced by Oil Refineries
Oil refineries currently produce a number of important products. They include:
Crude Oil
Crude oil is the starting point for the oil refining process. This oil is liquid petroleum that has not been refined. Its chemical makeup involves a large number of various chemicals. For example, there are hydrocarbons with different boiling points. The process of oil transport is handled by various transportation systems which include pipelines.
Petroleum (crude oil) is processed and refined into valuable products like gasoline (petrol), diesel oil, bitumen base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, liquefied petroleum gas, and petroleum propane in an oil refinery or petroleum refinery.