Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has called for the immediate suspension and public scrutiny of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s proposed “Technical Equity Partnership” involving Chinese firms Sanjiang Chemical Company Limited and Xingcheng (Fuzhou) Industrial Park Operation and Management Co. Ltd.

In a statement issued on Friday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku described the agreement as “another dangerous gamble” with Nigeria’s economic future.

According to the statement reported by Punch Newspapers, the former Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu of attempting to mortgage key national assets through arrangements he claimed lacked transparency, accountability and technical credibility.

Atiku questioned the competence of the two Chinese firms selected for the rehabilitation and management of the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries.

“We are demanding an immediate suspension and public scrutiny of the ‘Technical Equity Partnership’ announced by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited involving two Chinese firms,” he stated.

He argued that despite billions of dollars reportedly spent on refinery rehabilitation over the years, Nigerians were again being asked to trust what he called another “experiment built on secrecy and questionable competence.”

The former vice president claimed that independent assessments showed neither company possessed the global reputation or technical expertise associated with managing large-scale crude oil refineries.

Atiku said Sanjiang Chemical mainly specialises in petrochemicals such as surfactants, methanol-to-olefins and light hydrocarbon processing, rather than crude oil refining.

“There is no publicly available evidence anywhere in the world showing that Sanjiang has ever built, operated, or managed a full-scale crude oil refinery of the magnitude and complexity of Port Harcourt or Warri refineries,” he said.

He also criticised Xingcheng (Fuzhou) Industrial Park Operation and Management Co. Ltd., alleging that available records did not show verifiable experience in petroleum engineering or refinery operations.

According to Atiku, the Federal Government and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited should have considered globally recognised refinery engineering and EPC firms instead of companies whose expertise he said remained unclear.

He warned that the arrangement could turn Nigeria’s refineries into “another expensive black hole of failed promises, reckless experimentation, and opaque transactions.”

The ADC chieftain further raised concerns about Sanjiang Chemical’s financial standing, alleging that reports indicated declining revenues, shrinking profitability and rising debt exposure.

“This raises a fundamental question: if a company is already battling financial compression and liquidity concerns in its own operations, how exactly does it intend to shoulder the burden of reviving two of Africa’s most troubled refineries?” he queried.

Atiku maintained that Nigerians should not allow what he described as another cycle of opaque refinery agreements after years of failed turnaround maintenance projects.

The NNPC has yet to officially respond to Atiku’s remarks as of the time of filing this report.