The Nigerian Government has acknowledged that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) lacks the funds to replace the country’s old and corroded pipelines. Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri, made this declaration at the Energy and Labour Summit 2024 in Abuja. He emphasized that the pipelines, built in the 1960s and 1970s, have exceeded their lifespan, making evacuation of crude oil a significant challenge.
Lokpobiri stated, “Part of our problem is that pipelines that were traditionally transporting our crude were built in the 1960s and the 1970s and the lifespan is since over.” He added that even if Nigeria can produce more than 1.7 million barrels of crude oil, the problem is how to evacuate it to the terminal. He noted that pipeline vandalism is easy due to the expired and corroded state of the pipelines.
The minister called for public-private partnerships (PPP) to fix the old pipelines, saying, “That is why we have to go for the global model – PPP. We have to get the private sector to come in.” He emphasized that investors must have confidence in the country, which was lacking in the past 12 years.
Lokpobiri also attributed fuel smuggling to the NNPC importing and selling fuel below the landing cost. He said, “Nigeria plays a very critical role in the energy security in Africa. That is why whatever PMS we import into Nigeria finds its way to the whole of West Africa.”
On supplying crude to local refineries, Lokpobiri expressed concerns that this may suffer a setback unless production is ramped up. He said, “Our ambition is to ramp up production. It is only when we ramp up production that the midstream and the downstream can also be successful.”
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