The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd., on Thursday called for full implementation of the energy mix to drive efficient power supply across the country.
The Chairman of the Board of NNPC, Ltd., Sen. Margery Chuba-Okadigbo, made this known in an interview with journalists on the sidelines of the just concluded 2022 Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston, Texas, United States.
According to her, “The discourse at the centre stage was all about the transition from carbon dependency on fossil fuel.
“For us at NNPC, we are placing more emphasis on gas as you can see from the AKK project which we inspected a couple of weeks ago.
“I think it’s time for us to understudy what will work for us as an African continent. We should be able to know the homegrown system that can be harnessed and make us different and peculiar.
“I don’t know why coal which is known in Enugu State is not converted for electricity generation? I don’t understand the story behind coal being referred to as dirty energy.”
According to her, in some parts of England coal is still a source of energy, and that there is a need to utilise coal and other mineral resources for the energy mix.
“They are available to us and should be utilised for an efficient power supply across the country,” she said.
Chuba-Okadigbo said: “We cannot keep up with the full direction of the Western world and abandon our resources.
“There is an urgent need to make use of what we have to derive the satisfaction we want for Nigeria.”
Speaking on the nation’s refineries, the Chairman, assured that the board was working assiduously to ensure full operations of the refineries.
“We have chosen to fix the refineries and work is ongoing. Currently, work is ongoing at the Port-Harcourt refinery.
“We project that at the end of the first quarter of next year, the refinery should be producing 60,000 barrels per day.
“The contracts of Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) with Tecnimont SpA, for the refinery’s rehabilitation are working.
“It is something to trust as President Muhammadu Buhari is determined to make the refineries work,” she said.