“NMDPRA, NNPC, Dangote key to downstream development, says Ugochinyere”

The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere, has stated that the roles of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Mele Kyari, President/CEO of Dangote (Refinery) Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, and other indigenous refiners are critical in the ongoing downstream sector development.

Ugochinyere, who represents Ideato North/South of Imo State in the House of Representatives, made this remark while receiving Petroleum Engineering students from the North-Central geopolitical zone who paid him a courtesy visit.

The lawmaker noted that NMDPRA as a regulator, Kyari-NNPCL as a public sector leader, Dangote as a private sector participant, and other indigenous refiners have all contributed significantly to the development of the downstream sector, which serves as the fulcrum of energy supply and economic advancement in the country.

He further urged the Petroleum Engineering students to focus on their studies and acquire relevant skills to positively impact the petroleum sector after their graduation. He also encouraged them to learn from and support the industry’s leaders.

He said: “The roles of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, and President/CEO of Dangote (Refinery) Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, are critical in the ongoing downstream development.

“For instance, the NMDPRA is responsible for the technical and commercial regulation of midstream and downstream operations. The overriding objective is to effectively control the petroleum industry’s midstream and downstream value chains to encourage sustainable growth, promote adequate product pricing, supply, and national development.

“The NNPCL and its downstream agenda under the current leadership of Kyari, and the EVP downstream Isiaku, on the other hand, are responsible for the downstream sector of Nigeria’s oil and gas industry. This includes refining, distribution, marketing, and retailing of petroleum products.

“Kyari’s efforts, for instance, have resulted in the transformation of the national oil company, NNPCL, and the country’s petroleum sector into a new era of competitiveness and profitability. His commitment to ending the importation of refined fuel, supporting local refineries with crude, and investing in local refining companies is quite commendable and timely.

“Also playing a critical role is the President/Chief Executive Officer of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, whose refinery, against all odds, is the world’s largest single-train refinery with the capacity to process 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day, inaugurated in May 2023.

“Since September 2024, when the refinery began producing petrol, it initially supplied 25 million litres per day, with plans to gradually increase production to 35 million liters daily. It is expected to play a major role in meeting Nigeria’s fuel needs, saving forex, and reducing the country’s reliance on imports.

“The results of the efforts by Kyari and Dangote are already being felt, as acknowledged by the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, which attributed the recent drop in the pump price of premium motor spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, to the fierce competition between Nigeria’s two refineries owned by Dangote and NNPCL.”