NNPC rules out sale of Port Harcourt refinery—that’s the big update from Abuja today. Addressing growing rumors, Group CEO Bayo Ojulari announced at a town hall meeting that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited is not selling the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC). Instead, the company is pushing ahead with high-quality rehabilitation and keeping it fully under state control.

Ojulari described any previous talk of selling as “ill-advised and sub-commercial,” and said the decision to re-open the refinery before full upgrades was premature and costly. Now, he says, further progress—especially at Port Harcourt—will rely on strategic technical partnerships, not divestment.

This announcement came after headlines were sparked at the 2025 OPEC Seminar in Vienna, where Ojulari mentioned that “all options were on the table” regarding Nigeria’s refineries, which sparked widespread speculation. With this update, NNPCL aims to reassure both staff and Nigerians that Port Harcourt, as a national asset, will remain intact and revitalised