ABUJA — President Bola Tinubu on Thursday declared that his administration would revive Nigeria's moribund refineries, but warned that their success would be measured by productivity and profitability, not mere activity as was the case in the past.
Tinubu made the pledge while receiving the Executive President of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), Salimon Oladiti, and members of the union at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa. Addressing the delegation's long-standing concerns over the delayed revival of the state-owned refineries, the President said, "The refineries you mentioned are going to come back to work. We're just building a very firm reset and structural reworking of the economy," adding that "ordinary flame and smoke of a refinery doesn't mean it's working, until it's profitable and yields the value for which it is built."
The President also called on vehicle and truck owners who have converted to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) to pass on the resulting cost savings to commuters rather than retaining the full benefit. "We will encourage you, but ask your drivers to let it trickle to the commuters too, because whatever benefit that is coming from CNG is going into the pocket of truck owners," he said, noting that the spread of CNG benefits had been slower than he would like.
Tinubu linked both commitments to the broader fiscal reforms his administration has pursued since 2023, crediting the reset for freeing up funding for major road projects including the Lagos-Ibadan, Abuja-Kaduna, Abuja-Kano and Sokoto-Badagry roads.
Recalling a tense meeting years earlier at Akodo Resort in Lagos, the President said he had been upfront with the union from the outset about subsidy policy direction, insisting that no threat of industrial action would force a reversal on petrol subsidy removal. He pushed back against the narrative that subsidy removal had hurt ordinary Nigerians, arguing that the reforms primarily benefited salary earners at every tier of government, including market women and civil servants' families.
The President affirmed that he had taken full ownership of fixing the economy regardless of the state in which he inherited it, stating, "I've accepted the assets and liabilities of my predecessors, no matter what has happened in the years past... It's my responsibility now, as President, to fix it." He appealed for continued partnership from the union through the difficulties of governance, likening the process to childbirth: "Motherhood is painful, but the joy is everlasting. I promise you, you will enjoy a better Nigeria."
Earlier in the visit, Oladiti raised concerns on behalf of the union, particularly over the casualisation of workers in the upstream oil and gas sector, describing it as an unwholesome practice that has persisted despite repeated engagement with affected companies. He urged the President to use his office to help address the issue, while commending the administration's road rehabilitation efforts, including the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway, for improving safety for the union's tanker driver members.
Oladiti also commended the government's move to revive the Warri and Port Harcourt refineries through partnership with Chinese firms, and called for similar attention to the ageing depot network of the Nigerian Pipelines and Storage Company (NPSC), recommending they be handed to private investors under an equity arrangement. He further urged the President to press state governors to comply with the Supreme Court judgment affirming the financial autonomy of local governments.
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