The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, has said that contrary to expectations in certain quarters, the proposed modular refineries in the Delta region of the country would not bridge the petrol supply deficit Nigeria is currently experiencing, The Sun reports.

Kachikwu, alongside his counterparts in Foreign Affairs, Industry, Trade and Investment and Water Resources, spoke to State House Correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

He explained that the modular refineries would essentially address the menace of illegal crude oil refining rampant in the Niger Delta, while saving the environment and providing more legal opportunities for the youth of the area.

He however pointed out that Nigeria’s dependence on importation of petrol would be adequately checked by fixing the existing four refineries to full production capacity by 2019 as well as the upcoming Dangote Refinery in Lagos, the proposed Nigeria/Niger joint refinery and another private refinery under construction.

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