TheCable

The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) says the 5,000 barrels per day (bpd) Waltersmith Modular Refinery project is ready for operations.

Sarki Auwalu (pictured), director of DPR, said this during a pre-commissioning visit to the project site in Ibigwe, Imo state.

Auwalu said: “We can confirm that the refinery is very much ready to commence operations. We have seen all the preparations. My overall assessment is excellent”.

He said people should recognise that DPR is an enabler and not a regulator; as their focus is on how to create opportunities, on how Nigeria’s vast oil and gas resources are managed for the betterment of Nigerians.

“Waltersmith is one of our success stories. We consider the project as ours. We have been tracking their growth and we are happy to see that our child is growing. It is our plan that they expand and they have the potential,” Auwalu said.

At the pre-commissioning, Abdulrasaq Isah, chairman of Waltersmith Refining and Petrochemical Company, said: “We want to demonstrate that it is practically a waste of resources to produce crude oil and just sell it. It is more impactful to add value and make more significant impact on the gross domestic product (GDP) of our nation.

“This is the first phase of a series of refinery development which will culminate in the delivery of up to 50,000 bpd refining capacity that will expand the product slate to include premium motor spirit (PMS), liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and aviation fuel.”

Isah further said the expansion plan consists of 20,000 bpd crude oil refinery and a standalone 25,000 bpd condensate refinery both of which are at early stages of project development.

According to DPR, the 5,000 bps modular refinery, which is scheduled for official commissioning on October 26, 2020, has a crude oil storage capacity of 60,000 barrels and is projected to deliver over 271 million litres per year of refined petroleum products such as diesel, kerosene, naphtha and heavy fuel oils, to the domestic market.