Refineries will work again, Tinubu assures petroleum workers, warns against hoarding CNG benefits

President Bola Tinubu has pledged to revive Nigeria's state-owned refineries, but stressed that their success will hinge on productivity and profitability, not just visible operations. Speaking to the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) in Abuja, Tinubu stated, "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."

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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.

He cautioned 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." This focus on tangible results signals a shift from previous approaches where refineries might appear operational without delivering significant economic value.

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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.

Tinubu also addressed the transition to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), urging vehicle and truck owners to share the cost savings with commuters. "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 the benefits were not spreading as widely as desired.

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We will do more. 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.

The President linked these initiatives to his administration's broader fiscal reforms, highlighting the availability of funds for significant road infrastructure projects like the Lagos-Ibadan and Abuja-Kano expressways. He also firmly rejected any possibility of reinstating fuel subsidies, recalling a past meeting where he informed the union, "you may strike all you want, but fuel subsidy will be gone."

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I’m glad you have seen the effect of being able to find funding for long-term projects, the Lagos-Ibadan Road, Abuja-Kaduna, Abuja-Kano, Sokoto-Badagry and many other road networks, all for the good of us, the good of our economy and the safety of our people.