The Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, has assured Nigerians that the fuel crisis being experienced in the country will soon be a thing of the past.

Bamidele gave this assurance in an interview with newsmen on the sidelines of the Oil Technology Conference in Houston, Texas on Friday.

He said the legislature is working tirelessly to ensure that fuel scarcity and frequent queues at filling stations are resolved and that there were plans to involve more private-sector players in the construction of new refineries.

In his words;
“The Senate is working to ensure that more private-sector players are licensed to own and operate refineries. This is to support other smaller ones that are springing up in several parts of the country.

“In addition to licensing new refinery operators, the Federal Government and Senate are working to ensure that the existing refineries are turned around with repairs and replacement of parts carried out where necessary,” he said.

Bamidele said the Senate had received an assurance from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited that two of its refineries in Warri and Port Harcourt would come on stream before the end of the year.

Opeyemi maintained that the focus was to ensure that Nigeria meets its OPEC production quota.

He further explained that achieving such milestones would provide more revenue for the government and halt lack and borrowings.