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Nigeria’s Minister for State, Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, on Tuesday, said the claim that he directed the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) to stop running its refineries and focus solely on equity participation in other refineries is “false”.

Mr Lokpobiri, in a statement posted on his X handle on Tuesday, made this known in reaction to a claim made by the Director of Upstream in the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Kamoru Busari.

Mr Busari, who represented the minister at a recent conference in Lagos said Mr Lokpobiri has advised the NNPC to stop running its refineries and focus solely on equity participation in other refineries.

In his reaction on Tuesday, Mr Lokpobiri said this does not represent his position as the minister overseeing the oil sector, nor does it reflect the stance of the federal government.

“I wish to categorically state that the claim that I directed the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to stop running its own refineries and focus solely on equity participation in other refineries is false.

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