In a bid to arrest the current scarcity of Premium Motor Spirit otherwise called petrol in many parts of the country, the Federal Government on Wednesday approved the immediate payment of N413bn to oil marketers as outstanding subsidy claims.
This was confirmed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation in a statement signed by its Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr. Ohi Alegbe.
“It is our belief that with the outstanding payment due to the oil marketers now assured, the marketers and other downstream players will join hands with the NNPC to guarantee that the nation remains wet with petroleum products all year round,” the corporation stated.
The NNPC also said it had stepped up measures to eliminate the noticeable fuel queues in petrol stations across some major cities in the country with the injection of additional volumes of PMS to enrich product availability in the affected areas.
According to the national oil company, the move is in line with its drive to ensure zero fuel queues ahead of the forthcoming Christmas and New Year celebrations and beyond, adding that it was working with its downstream subsidiary company, the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company, and other downstream players to consolidate the prevailing stability in the supply and distribution of fuel nationwide.
“Apart from increasing the volume of products distributed to stations across the country, inspection teams from the PPMC have been commissioned to go round our operational areas to ensure compliance with laid down rules regarding loading and product evacuation across board to eliminate hoarding and other vices detrimental to the free flow of products,’’ it said.
The corporation noted that the initiative to ensure zero fuel queues had been bolstered with the payment approval to the marketers by the Federal Government.
Prior to the announcement of the approval of the N413bn arrears, majority of petroleum products marketers had converged on Abuja in anticipation of the payment.
Findings by our correspondent revealed that the marketers had waited for two weeks following a promise by government to offset the debt.
Officials of the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria and Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association were said to be in the Federal Capital Territory when the approval was made.
The Executive Secretary, DAPPMAN, Mr. Olufemi Adewole, had recently told our correspondent that the government had promised to offset some of the subsidy arrears by the first week of November.
“Government is till owing us, but we were assured by the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, that something will be paid to us between now and the first week of November,” Adewole had said.
Meanwhile, the petrol supply chain in Lagos, which is the main loading point for petroleum products in the country at the moment, has been hit by supply cuts.
Three petroleum product marketers, including an official of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, confirmed to our correspondent on Wednesday afternoon that the NNPC was the sole supplier of products to the market.
The recent financial incapacitation of the marketers owing to mounting subsidy debts had put serious pressure on the NNPC to meet local demand for petrol.
One of the marketers, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said, “As we speak now, the NNPC is the sole supplier of petrol to the market. The NNPC decides who it will allocate the product to.
“For now, the product is not enough to go round the oil marketers. In fact, marketers without NNPC’s bulk purchase agreement cannot get any product. The ones with the agreement note get a fraction of what they demand.
“Some marketers have placed orders for two months without any hope of getting products. The situation is likely going to worsen as everybody seems to be looking at the NNPC. MOMAN and DAPPMAN members are not importing at all and the NNPC does not have the capacity to fully serve the Nigerian market.”
As of Wednesday, queues were noticed in some parts of Lagos and Ogun states, while stakeholders said the situation had dragged for weeks in Oyo, Osun, Ondo and Kwara states.
Responding to the development, the Department of Petroleum Resources said in a statement that it had set up a 24-hour surveillance monitoring team of petrol stations nationwide to ensure unhindered sale of petroleum products at government regulated prices.
It said the move was in response to reported cases of panic buying of products across the country.
0 comments:
Post a Comment