A consortium of South n investors has finalized plans to establish four refineries in Nigeria, each with a capacity of 100,000 barrels, according to an announcement by the Federal Government on Tuesday.

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, revealed this information at the inaugural summit of the Crude Oil Refineries Owners Association of Nigeria, held in Lagos.

He explained that the Federal Government is creating an “open environment” to attract investors to build refineries across the country.

Lokpobiri also mentioned that a recent “approval was granted to invite the consortium,” although he did not disclose its name.

“We encourage investors to build limited refineries by providing an open environment. A recent approval was granted to invite to Nigeria a consortium of investors from South Korea, which intends to establish four 100,000 barrels-model refineries in four different locations in Nigeria.”

He further added that the Federal Government has adopted a “public-private partnership model” to foster investment in the oil and gas sector’s midstream and downstream segments, which will lead to the development of more modular and large-scale refineries.

The minister stated that this initiative is expected to succeed because the government is open to equity investment in modular and upcoming refineries as part of a strategy to achieve energy security.

He also referenced the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission’s new “domestic crude supply obligation guidelines,” which aim to increase transparency and ensure local refineries have access to necessary crude oil.

Lokpobiri emphasized that the government is working closely with stakeholders to implement the recommendations from the Modular Refinery Committee, which includes offering “special concession” to local refinery owners, ensuring consistent crude oil supply for their operations.

He went on to say, “We will ensure the deregulation of the downstream sector is 100 per cent” and put systems in place to alleviate its impact on vulnerable populations.

Additionally, he noted that the ministry has made it easier for refineries to benefit from existing tax exemptions on importing equipment, which aligns with Nigeria’s goal of becoming “Africa’s petroleum refining hub.”

Lokpobiri further explained that, although the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) created the National Gas Infrastructure Fund, funded by sales of petroleum products in the country, there are plans to amend the PIA to allow some of this fund to support refinery infrastructure development.

“In effect, we will initiate the review of the PIA to enable this. Meanwhile, CORAN as a body should take up the campaign. Through the Petroleum Technology Development Fund and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, we are prioritising partnerships with international institutions in knowledge transfer for manpower in refinery operations, and investment in research and development, to support technological advancements and innovation in the refining sector.”

Looking ahead, Lokpobiri said, “In no distant time, we intend to create the apprenticeship programme in collaboration with existing refineries to develop expertise in our refinery operations.”

To combat crude oil theft and illegal refining, he disclosed that the ministry had also set up an international emergency committee to develop local solutions for refining within the country.