Despite a combined $3bn rehabilitation effort, Nigeria’s three state-owned refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna remain dormant, with workers idle and communities around them struggling, Sunday PUNCH investigations have revealed.

The report noted that the multi-billion-dollar contracts were intended to restore production capacity and reduce the country’s dependence on imported fuel. Instead, the plants are empty, equipment lies idle, and tanker parks are deserted. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is already probing allegations of mismanaged funds tied to the projects.

In Port Harcourt, where $1.5bn was allocated for rehabilitation, officials announced in 2024 that partial operations had begun, raising hopes that petrol, diesel, kerosene and fuel oil would once again flow. However, findings by Sunday PUNCH showed that the facility only worked briefly before shutting down. By mid-2025, the site had fallen silent, with only small quantities of old diesel stock being lifted. Marketers accused the government of deceiving Nigerians with exaggerated claims.

The Warri refinery, which resumed activity in December 2024 after nearly a decade of dormancy, has also collapsed into silence. Correspondents who visited the complex months later found no fuel production and empty tanker parks. Staff were said to clock in and out while the refinery stayed inactive, with insiders blaming inconsistent NNPCL policies for the paralysis.

In Kaduna, the situation is no different. A $740m “quick-fix” contract signed in 2023 was supposed to restore at least 60 per cent capacity, but residents told Sunday PUNCH that nothing has changed. Once employing over 1,000 workers, the refinery now has fewer than 100 staff. The collapse has crippled local businesses, with shop owners and transport operators lamenting that the once-busy complex is now deserted. Some residents compared the repeated promises of resumption to “waiting for something that will never come.”