Warri Refinery Hit by Explosion

 

An explosion at the Warri Refinery and Petrochemical Company, WRPC, Warri, Delta State, Tuesday, has forced the 35-year-old company to shut down production.

The fire was said to have started at about 11.00 am in the refining section of the company, a subsidiary of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, with an installed capacity of 125,000 bpd, while crude oil refining process was on.

“It is the 10-H-02 equipment in area 2 that exploded, and the fire lasted for few minutes, before it was put off by firefighters and safety officials of the company,” according to a source

“The exact cause of the explosion, which sent huge balls of fire skyward has not been ascertained and I can tell you that investigation is on.

The old company which has not been working to its full capacity for years, operates mostly with outmoded equipment.