The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) on Thursday signed an agreement with Daewoo Engineering & Construction Nigeria Limited for the rehabilitation of the Kaduna Refinery & Petrochemical Company (KRPC) Limited.
The signing of the agreement took place at the NNPC headquarters in Abuja. According to the deal, Daewoo is charged with quick fix repair of the facility at a cost estimated at $741.
“NNPC Limited’s Kaduna Refining & Petrochemical Company Ltd (KRPC) & Daewoo Engineering & Construction Nigeria Ltd. signed a contract for maintenance services for quick-fix repairs of KRPC,” the oil firm said on its official Twitter page on Thursday.
At the signing of the agreement on Thursday, the NNPC Executive Vice President, Downstream, Adeyemi Adetunji, said it is a great honour that they are signing the maintenance service contract for the refinery.
This marks a milestone in the history of KRPC considering that the last Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) on the refinery occurred about fifteen (15) years ago,” Mr Adetunji said.
He noted that the project was framed after extensive engagement with Daewoo on the quick-fix strategy to repair and re-stream KRPC and operate it on a sustainable basis at a minimum capacity utilization of 60 per cent.
“This project shall be executed in three work packages as a Maintenance Services contract by Daewoo E&C Nigeria Limited at an estimated maximum cost ceiling of $740,669,600.00 with a duration of Twenty-One (21) months.
“The quick-fix strategy guarantees the fastest route to restreaming Warri Refinery Petrochemical Company (WRPC) and KRPC for in-country production of refined petroleum products.”
President Buhari excited about deal
Recall that last October, NNPC Limited signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Daewoo Group of South Korea on the sidelines of the 2022 World Bio Summit in Seoul, South Korea for the rehabilitation of the refinery. Then, Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari led the delegation.
Speaking excitedly about the deal in October, the Nigerian leader had acknowledged that Daewoo Group has massive investments in the automobile, maritime and other sectors of our economy.
“I am also aware that Daewoo is currently engaged in the execution of the NLNG train seven project and also constructing sea-going LPG vessels for NNPC and her partners.”
He said he looked forward to the delivery of ongoing projects, especially at the Warri and Kaduna refineries and the NLNG Train Seven.
He stressed that “This, no doubt, will open many more windows of opportunities for Daewoo and other Korean companies in Nigeria.”
For the records: The 110,000 bpd-capacity Kaduna Refinery is one of Nigeria’s four dysfunctional refineries that have produced no fuel for years leaving the country to rely on imported petroleum products. It recorded a N22.9 billion loss in 2021.
The biggest state-run refinery, which is Port Harcourt (PHRC), is currently undergoing repairs handled by Tecnimont of Italy.
Earlier in August 2021, the Federal Executive Council approved the award of the contract for the rehabilitation of Warri and Kaduna Refineries at the combined total sum of $1.5 billion.
