FG approves 13 modular refineries - NNPC GMD Baru- A total of 35 firms expressed interest to establish modular refineries in Nigeria - Less than half got the approvals from the department of petroleum resources as only 13 were given licenses - The government hopes to use the modular refineries to stop illegal refining of crude and also create employment in the Niger Delta region Out of the 35 firms that expressed interest to establish modular refineries, 13 have been given licenses by the Nigerian government. Maikanti Baru, the group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) made the announcement at the Offshore Technology Conference 2018 Nigeria Oil Industry Award Dinner in the United States, where he was the special guest of honour and received an award. According to him, the corporation and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources were collaborating to encourage the establishment of modular refineries in the Niger Delta to encourage job creation. Baru stated that in the months ahead, the dream of transforming Nigeria from a net exporter of crude oil to a net exporter of petroleum products would become a reality. He said he was committed to achieving the December 2019 target set by the federal government to end the importation of petroleum products into the country. READ ALSO: There is no president in Nigeria that has ever managed the economy like Buhari - Gov Ajimobi On efforts being made to refurbish Nigeria’s four existing refineries in Warri, Port Harcourt and Kaduna, the NNPC GMD said there is an ongoing arrangement with the original builders of the refineries to return them to at least 90% capacity utilisation before the 2019 deadline. He stated that the process for companies interested in the rehabilitation of the refineries using a contractor-financing model had been completed and successful and the companies for the different projects would be announced soon. “This model is expected to be a self-sustaining financial model with near zero reliance on the federal government funds. For smooth running and implementation, we are also changing the operating and commercial framework of the refineries to make them work efficiently and be commercially viable,’’ he said. In an earlier report by Legit.ng, the the minister of petroleum resources, Ibe Kachikwu, said that the proposed modular refineries for Delta and Rivers states were not meant to address the current refining challenge faced by Nigeria. He said the modular refineries are expected to only produce an average 2,000 and 10,000 at most capacity per refinery while the average consumption of fuel by Nigeria stands at 630,000 barrels per day. PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read best news on Nigeria’s #1 news app “On modular refineries; modular wasn’t supposed to provide a sufficient solution to your product needs, modular are on the average between 2,000 and 5,000 maybe 10,000 at most capacity per refinery. "Your consumption is about 630,000 barrels per day, that is not the essence of modular, what modular was supposed to do for us is provide work within some of these communities where people are busy doing illegal refining," he said. Former NNPC group managing director Andrew Yakubu in court over fraud allegations - on Legit.ng TV Source: Legit.ng - A total of 35 firms expressed interest to establish modular refineries in Nigeria - Less than half got the approvals from the department of petroleum resources as only 13 were given licenses - The government hopes to use the modular refineries to stop illegal refining of crude and also create employment in the Niger Delta region READ ALSO Legit.ng PAY ATTENTION