Bank of America just raised its EUR/USD forecast
(Adds detail, background)
By Felix Onuah
ABUJA, March 17 (Reuters) - Nigeria's cabinet has approved
$1.5 billion of spending on the modernisation of the Port
Harcourt oil refinery and awarded a contract to Italy's
Tecnimont MTCM.MI , Petroleum Minister Timipre Sylva said on
Wednesday.
The project will be completed in three phases, the first
within 18 months taking the refinery to 90% production capacity,
with the second and final phases carried out within 24 months
and 44 months respectively, Sylva told reporters in Abuja.
Africa's top oil exporter has made producing its own fuels a
priority for years but efforts to revamp its refineries have
failed, leaving it almost entirely reliant on imports.
It is now struggling to balance a promise to end costly fuel
subsidies with public anger over more expensive fuel.
"The Ministry of Petroleum Resources presented a memo on the
rehabilitation of Port Harcourt refinery ... and ... it was
approved by council today," the minister said.
Slyva said funding will come from the state-oil company's
cash flow, budget provisions and Afreximbank.
Reuters reported in January that NNPC was in talks to raise
around $1 billion to refurbish its largest refining complex at
Port Harcourt and that Afreximbank is looking into a facility
for the refurbishment. The country opened bids in December for investors to carry
out engineering work for the revamp.
Nigeria has four refineries with a combined capacity of
445,000 barrels per day (bpd): one in the north at Kaduna and
three in the oil-rich Niger delta region at Warri and Port
Harcourt. The Port Harcourt complex consists of two plants with
a combined capacity of 210,000 bpd.
In April 2020, they were all shut pending rehabilitation
while the refineries lost some 167 billion naira a year early
and only Warri processed any oil.