Posted on: 09:35 Tue, 17 Nov 2015



There is good news for fuel
marketers. President Muhammadu
Buhari has asked the National
Assembly to approve the payment of
their N413 billion claims, it was
learnt yesterday.

The payment is believed to be the
key to ending the crippling petrol
scarcity in many cities.

Petrol is being sold for between
N100 and N400 per litre in various
parts of the country. Queues are long
at filling stations where there is fuel.
Many others are shut for lack of
supplies.

A Presidency source said last night
that “only about N140 billion was
appropriated for subsidy payment in
the current budget and it has been
exhausted”.

“Out of respect for the parliament,
the President insisted that the right
thing must be done by seeking
approval from the National Assembly
before an additional kobo is paid in
excess of what the budget makes
provision for.

“This is a clear departure from the
past, when extra-budgetary
expenditure was the norm.”

Another source said “the Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation
(NNPC) expressed the belief that with
the outstanding payment due to oil
marketers now assured, the
marketers and other downstream
players will join hands with the
corporation to guarantee that the
nation remains wet with petroleum
products all year round,” the source
said.

The Senior Special Assistant (SSA),
Media, to the President, Mallam
Garba Shehu, noted that the
President “is desirous to end the
petrol scarcity. But he insists that
due process must be followed.”

Marketers are hopeful that if the
N413 billion subsidy cash is
disbursed, the fuel scarcity will be
over.

But they also complained of lack of
foreign exchange to facilitate
importation of products.

A marketer last night said: “We
cannot access dollar or pound
sterling to import. The banks have
refused to give us letters of credit
because they don’t have confidence
that we will pay back. It is only the
NNPC that imports and what they
import is grossly inadequate.

“The issue is that many independent
depots and retail outlets don’t have
products because the NNPC only
gives product to marketers
accredited as bulk buyers.

“The fuel marketing arm of the oil
industry is gradually collapsing
because most of the oil marketing
firms currently operate at about 30
per cent capacity utilisation. Some of
our depots that load around 150
trucks daily have dropped to 40
trucks daily.

“If the current supply situation is not
addressed quickly, the Yuletide will
be celebrated without fuel, and you
know the implication.”

The NNPC’s Group General Manager,
Group Public Affairs Division, Mr.
Ohi Alegbe, said the Corporation
trucked out 25,042,686 litres of
premium motor spirit (PMS) to
various parts of the country between
last Saturday and Sunday..

According to the data made available
by the NNPC spokesman, which
showed the depots from where the
fuel was loaded, companies that took
delivery of the product, the number
of the vehicle that lifted the product
and the quantity lifted, 615 filling
stations got 25,042,686 litres.

They include majors, such as Total,
Mobil, Oando, MRS, Conoil and Forte
Oil. The NNPC Retail and
independents, including NIPCO and
Eterna, among many others,
especially in Gombe, also got
supplies.

Suleja depot loaded 7,178,613 litres
for 179 stations, Kaduna depot 2,470
490 litres for 59 stations, Kano
4,930,847 litres for 107 filling
stations, Minna depot 224,986 litres
for six stations, Gusau 2,311 951
litres (60 stations), and Satellite
depot, which feeds Lagos State,
2,164,940 (63 stations).

Others include Ilorin depot 303,000
litres (nine stations), Ore 110,989
litres (three stations), Ibadan depot,
766,007 (21 stations), Gombe area,
which has the highest number of
independent stations got 3,662,893
litres (78 stations) and Aba depot,
917,970 litres (30 filling stations).

Source: TheNation