NNPC Chief: Refineries shutdown ends “decades of self-deception”

The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd, Bayo Ojulari, has stated that the shutdown of Nigeria’s state-owned refineries was a necessary step to end decades of pretense in the downstream oil sector.

Speaking at the Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES), Ojulari declared that Nigeria had spent too long pretending its refineries were functional despite their consistent failure to deliver value.

“For years, we told ourselves stories,” he said. “But the numbers never supported those stories.”

Ojulari explained that an internal review revealed refinery operations had become a ritual rather than a business.

“We were running processes, not enterprises,” he stated. “Money was going out, but value was not coming in.”

He acknowledged the emotional significance of the refineries but emphasized that “emotion cannot replace truth.”

The NNPC boss traced the decline from efficient operations in the 1980s and 1990s to a shift toward contracting and financing models that eroded in-house operational capacity and maintenance culture.

Despite spending over ₦11 trillion on repairs between 2010 and 2023, Nigeria remained dependent on fuel imports.

Ojulari asserted that continuing this path was irresponsible.

“At some point, leadership requires honesty,” he said. “We had to admit that this system was not working.”

Ojulari credited the operational Dangote Refinery with creating the space for this honesty.

“Whether you love Dangote or not, thank God it is working,” he said. “It allows us to stop pretending.”

He confirmed that NNPC is now focused on restructuring the refineries with credible partners to achieve real change, describing the shutdown as both a moral and economic decision.

“This is how nations grow: by telling themselves the truth,” Ojulari said.

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled:  Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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