The board of Greenfield Refinery Limited (NGRL), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has been established to oversee the construction and management of new refineries.

During the swearing-in ceremony, the Corporation’s Group Managing Director, Mele Kyari, entrusted the members with exploring all options for resolving the present petroleum importation crisis.

In a statement by the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Garba Muhammad, Kyari, who is also Chairman of the NGRL board, was quoted saying: “As a business, this is a big opportunity for us and this company’s balance sheet must change positively. Going forward, with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), I can tell you that if you continue to post negative for three years, you are out. So, there is really no excuse.”

“Our company must grow and we can’t do well except we are able to process our production, whether it is the liquid or gas. If we don’t monetise it then we have done nothing. This is really a new chapter and we are committed to making it work,” he added.

He urged the board of directors and management team to put in place a solid structure with the necessary skills, technology, and funding to drive the company’s operations, and he expressed optimism that the company will be able to fulfil its mission.

All of the company’s actions in the fields of new refineries, condensate refineries, and equity purchase in reputable private refineries, he said, were aimed at safeguarding the country’s energy and security.

Mustapha Yakubu, Alternate Chairman of the Board and Group Executive Director, Refinery and Petrochemicals, commented that the company’s activities will be guided by cost-effective principles per the new Act, emphasising that profitability would be the main priority.

Bege Talson, Group General Manager, Greenfield Refineries and Project Division (GRPD) and Managing Director of the NGRL, also spoke about the division’s cooperation with third-party investors to build greenfield, modular, and condensate refineries with a total capacity of 250,000 barrels per stream day.

Other members of the board include are the Group Executive Director, Finance and Accounts, Umar Ajiya; Managing Director of the Nigerian Gas Company (NGC), Oluwaseyi Omotowa; and Managing Director of NNPC Retail, Elizabeth Aliyuda; Managing Director of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), Muhammad Ali-Zarah; and Tolulope Olubommo, the Company Secretary and Legal Adviser.