Kaduna Refining and Petrochemicals Company (KRPC) says it will save about $5.33 million daily for Nigeria on importation of fuel products when the refinery hits 90% production capacity soon.

Manager Production Programming and Quality Control (PPQC) of KRPC, Engineer Shehu Malami stated this in his paper, ‘KRPC Operations and Impact on the Economy’ presented on Saturday at the two-day annual Energy Correspondents Workshop (Kano 2015) with a theme, ‘Development Communication: An Imperative for the Oil And Gas Industry’. He noted that KRPC had recently disclosed that the refinery will hit 90 % production of its 110,000 installed capacity.

News Express gathered that the refinery had been operating at 60% production capacity before commencement of the Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) in October 2014.

“The impact of KRPC operations on the economy means that, if the refinery operates at. 90% capacity, it will save the nation %1.892 million daily on importation of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol,” Engr. Malami said.

He added: “At same 90%, KRPC will save $672,546 daily on importation of Kerosene,$1.86 million daily on import of diesel,$176,727 daily on importation of LPG and $727,306 million daily on import of fuel oil. This represents a total savings of $5.33 million daily for Fuel products only.”

Malami said the refinery is expected to produce 4,624,650 liters of PMS when it attains 90% capacity in the first quota of 2016 as against its current 60% status of 3,083,100 liters.

According to him, the volume of Kerosene production will rise up to 1,849,500 liters at 90% capacity as against current 1,233,000 liters production at 60% capacity.

That of diesel is to hit 3,153,600 liters at 90%, as against 2,102,400 liters at current 60% capacity.

LPG will attain 486,000 liters at 90% from its current 324,000 litres at 60% capacity among other products.

In his address, Chairman of the Kaduna chapter of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Correspondents Chapel, Comrade Mohammed Garba said all the congruent stakeholders such as regulators, players and the watchers of the sector, most especially the media, must harmonise their operations to work toward the effective development of the oil sector.

According to Garba, “This confirms that the petroleum sector is the main stay of Nigeria’s economy. Hence, there is a lot of responsibility placed on all those concerned with the oil and gas sector in the country.

“However, happenings in the past two decades point to a totally different scenario. The industry and its critical watchers, the media being at the forefront seem to be at logger-heads. There is hardly a week past in this period that a negative news item is not publish in a print medium or in an electronic station.

“Time is now ripe for the media and operators of the oil and gas sector in Nigeria to set a development communication agenda, which must be mutually, worked upon by everybody involved in this pact.

“This will be aimed at changing the negativity in the news reports and changing the negative perception of the public against the oil and gas sector.

“Development communication is a concept that has recently gained the attention of communications and development experts because of its germane importance.”

•Photo shows Kaduna Refinery.