The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) stated yesterday that the ongoing petrol scarcity, now affecting more states in the country, is expected to persist for at least two weeks.
Contrary to IPMAN’s assertion, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) insisted yesterday that it has sufficient stock of the product.
IPMAN’s Public Relations Officer, Chinedu Ukadike, expressed that the product is currently unavailable in the country.
He attributed the challenge to the ongoing turnaround maintenance of most refineries in Europe, which has made sourcing the product difficult.
Ukadike also cited importation bottlenecks and the slow pace of marketers’ licence renewal by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) as contributing factors to the acute shortage in supply.
He revealed that out of 15,000 marketers, only 1,050 have had their licences renewed by NMDPRA.
He said: “The situation is that there is no product. Once there is a lack of supply or inadequate supply, what you will see is scarcity and queues will emerge at filling stations.
“On the part of NNPCL, which is the sole supplier of petroleum products in Nigeria, they have attributed the challenge to logistics and vessel problems.
“Once there is a breach in the international supply chain, it will have an impact on domestic supply because we depend on imports. I also have it on good authority that most of the refineries in Europe are undergoing turnaround maintenance, so sourcing petroleum products has become a bit difficult.
“NNPC Group CEO has assured us that there will be improvement in the supply chain because their vessels are arriving.
Once that is done, normalcy will return. This is because once the 30-day supply sufficiency is disrupted, it takes two to three months to restore it.
“We expect that by next week or so, NNPC should be able to restore supply and with another week, normalcy should return”.
On challenges faced by marketers in renewing their licences, he said: “NNPC has said the marketers who have not been able to renew their licences will not be allowed to remain on their portal which has been shut for some time now. Because of this, we have not been able to request new products.
“At this nascent period of deregulation, you will discover that this leads to scarcity, even when the product arrives. As it is now, even by their data, out of 15,000 marketers that are on the portal with licences, only 1,050 renewed their licences.
“The requirement for renewal by NMDPRA is so much. Marketers are facing a hostile environment. NNPC placed a deadline of April 15, 2024, for marketers to renew their licences.
“We are, therefore, appealing to NNPC to extend this deadline and also to NMDPRA to hasten the release of licences of marketers who have completed their processes, and also reduce bottlenecks around licence renewals”.
“NNPC LTD CONFIRMS SUFFICIENT STOCK LEVELS”
“In response to the crisis, Chief Corporate Communications Officer of NNPC Ltd, Olufemi Soneye, expressed optimism yesterday that the long queues will clear in the coming days, citing the company’s adequate stock.”
He stated: “The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, wishes to clarify that the tightness in the supply of Premium Motor Spirit currently being experienced in some areas across the country is a result of logistics issues and they have been resolved.
“It also wishes to reiterate that prices of petroleum products are not changing. It urges Nigerians to avoid panic buying as there are sufficient products in the country.”
MEAN VOWS SWIFT CLEARING OF FUEL QUEUES
Similarly, the Chief Executive Officer/Executive Secretary, Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria, Mr. Clement Isong, said: “As the NNPC Ltd said, there were logistics issues and they have been resolved. The marketers who have fuel, are working round the clock and the queues will be cleared in the coming days.”