The founder of Silverbird Group and former senator, Ben Murray-Bruce, has called on President Bola Tinubu to address the poor performance of Nigeria's government-owned refineries and ensure they become productive and commercially viable.
Murray-Bruce expressed concern that despite Nigeria's vast crude oil reserves and the huge sums committed to reviving the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries, the country has remained "accustomed to exporting crude and importing the products refined from it."
He argued that Nigerians had become frustrated with repeated explanations from the government over the refineries' prolonged failure to operate effectively.
In a series of posts on his X page on Tuesday, the former lawmaker urged the President to appoint a capable individual to oversee the refineries.
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His call came days after Tinubu pledged to revive the country's dormant refineries, stressing that their success would be measured by productivity rather than the mere completion of activities, as had been the case in the past.
The President made the commitment on August 13, 2026, when he received the Executive President of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, Salimon Oladiti, and other members of the union at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
Responding to concerns raised by the delegation over the prolonged delay in restoring the state-owned refineries, Tinubu 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."
Murray-Bruce, however, pointed to Central Bank Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, and National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, as examples of individuals capable of "confront a broken system, step on powerful toes, offend entrenched interests and refuse to accept mediocrity simply because mediocrity has become normal."
He stated, "Nigeria cannot continue to behave like a poor country sitting on the assets of a rich country. We produce crude oil. We possess enormous reserves. We have decades of petroleum expertise. We have spent fortunes on refineries. Yet for years, we became accustomed to exporting crude and importing the products refined from it.
"That is economic madness of the wrong kind. Now, we need madness of the right kind. Mr President, make the rehabilitation and commercially viable operation of the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries a national obsession.
"And please, no more excuses. Nigerians have heard enough explanations about turnaround maintenance, contractors, technical reviews, committees, timelines and billions spent. We want products coming out of those refineries.
"We produce crude oil. We possess enormous reserves. We have decades of petroleum expertise. We have spent fortunes on refineries. Yet for years, we became accustomed to exporting crude and importing the products refined from it. Mr President, make the rehabilitation and commercially viable operation of the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries a national obsession."
The former senator stressed that although he supports the Tinubu administration, his position as a supporter should not be interpreted as "sycophancy."
"I write this as a supporter of your administration and as a Nigerian who wants you to succeed. But support must never become sycophancy. Sometimes, the greatest service a supporter can render is to tell the President what others around him may be too comfortable--or too frightened--to say," he added.
Murray-Bruce further urged the federal government to adopt whatever structure would ensure the efficient operation of the refineries, including partnerships with experienced international operators and private investors where necessary.
He said, "If the government cannot operate them efficiently, find the structure that can. Bring in world-class technical partners. Introduce private capital where necessary. Restructure them. Concession them if that produces the best outcome. But whatever model is chosen, the objective must be brutally simple: make the refineries work."
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Drawing lessons from the Dangote Refinery, which has a refining capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, Murray-Bruce proposed that the three government-owned facilities aim to produce at least half of that capacity.
"Dangote has shown what is possible on Nigerian soil. Its refinery was designed for 650,000 barrels per day and has reportedly demonstrated even higher throughput during performance testing.
"So let us establish an audacious benchmark. Mr President, let the three government-owned refining complexes target, at minimum, the equivalent of 50% of Dangote's nameplate refining capacity, about 325,000 barrels per day of reliable, commercially viable throughput. Then push beyond it.
"Nigeria should not merely aspire to satisfy its domestic demand. Our ambition should be much bigger. We should become a refining powerhouse for Africa and a major exporter of refined petroleum products. And upstream, the instruction should be equally uncompromising," he said.
