The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr Ibe Kachikwu, on Wednesday in Abuja dismissed the assertion that the Federal Government had commenced the unbundling of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
Kachikwu, who is also the Group Managing Director (GMD) of NNPC, made this known while fielding questions from State House correspondents.
He said that what the corporation did was reorganisation of the corporation to achieve greater efficiency in the oil sector of the nation’s economy.
“We have not unbundled NNPC. We had a press conference yesterday where I explained this.
“What we have simply done is reorganisation. We have five business entities focused on business- Upstream, Downstream, Refineries, Gas and Power, that are there before.
“There is also ventures that capture all our little companies that were not having proper stewardship.
“They are run by individuals who report to the GMD. The NNPC is still a whole. There is nothing new that has happened.
“I have tried to explain this and I am sure the NNPC workers are members of the family, they will understand.
“We are going to have a meeting, and they will be made to understand. Perhaps the engagement has not been good enough.
“NNPC has not been unbundled in the sense of breaking up NNPC into distinct institutions. I am concerned.
“I don’t want the industry shut down. I am sure we are going to resolve the issues very soon,” he further explained.
