The staggering financial weight of Nigeria’s idle refineries has become clearer, as new disclosures from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited show that related-party debts tied to its refining subsidiaries climbed to N8.5 trillion by December 2024.
The figures underline the cost of maintaining facilities that have delivered little or no output for years.
The News Chronicle learned that the bulk of the obligations arose from three major entities within the NNPC group. Port Harcourt Refining Company recorded the largest share with more than N4.2 trillion owed. NNPC Exploration and Production Limited followed closely with N4 trillion in liabilities to related parties.
Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company reported N2.4 trillion in outstanding balances. These numbers mark a steep rise from the N6.3 trillion recorded the previous year, reflecting a thirty five percent jump in just twelve months.
The rising balances come at a time when Nigeria continues to rely on the private Dangote Refinery and imported petroleum products, despite owning four refineries with a combined capacity of four hundred and forty five thousand barrels per day.
Several subsidiaries also showed worsening financial positions. NNPC E and P Limited cleared what was owed to it but accumulated more than four trillion naira in new liabilities, while Kaduna Refinery saw amounts owed to it surge significantly.
Even smaller units such as NNPC Gas Infrastructure Company reported shifts in their books. The entity posted eight hundred and forty eight million naira owed by related parties as of December 2024, a sharp change from the previous year’s figures.
Oil industry officials say the numbers expose the long standing financial leakages within the state refining system. A senior executive noted that the refineries continue to accumulate obligations without producing the revenue needed to offset them, creating a cycle of internal debt that ultimately burdens the federation.
Repeated promises to revive the Port Harcourt refinery have not delivered results. Although a one and a half billion dollar rehabilitation plan was announced in 2021, completion has been repeatedly postponed, with mid-2025 now the new target for partial operations.
The financial strain has intensified debates around the future of the state-owned facilities. Government advisers have hinted at privatisation if ongoing repairs fail, although such proposals face resistance from labour groups who insist the refineries remain national assets.
The broader economic environment has added urgency to the issue. Nigeria spent an estimated seventeen billion dollars on fuel imports in 2023, a figure worsened by the removal of subsidies and the volatility in foreign exchange markets.
The contrast between the stalled state refineries and the rapid rollout of Dangote’s privately owned facility has further highlighted the gap in efficiency and delivery.
Officials within the Tinubu administration say ongoing reforms aim to restore transparency, reduce losses, and enforce commercial discipline within the petroleum sector.
