Yemi Osinbajo, says refineries in the country are non-functional because they are government-owned.
Osinbajo said this in Abuja on Thursday while speaking at the 2017 African Modular Refinery Discussion organised by the Modular Refiners Association of Nigeria (MRAN), The Cable reports.
“Government cannot just go and be setting up refineries. If government sets up refineries and uses its people to run it, it won’t work. We have good examples in all the refineries that we have seen,” he said.
“If you look at the refineries we have today – Warri, Port Harcourt and Kaduna – the primary reason they are not working today is because they are government run.
“Government cannot do business. Government’s business is to create the enabling environment for business. And then government would put some investment into it.
“Government should not be in the business of setting up refineries all over the place; that is just a waste of time and resources.
Osinbajo said oil producing communities would be made to acquire stakes in refineries set up in their communities under the new modular refineries initiative being pursued by the federal government.
He said private investors, state and federal government would have stakes in the refineries.
