Victor EzejaAmid the raging fuel scarcity in parts of Nigeria, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), and the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN) have assured that there is adequate stock of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol for supply and promised that the queues at filling stations will clear latest by Wednesday.
The NNPCL spokesperson, Femi Soneye in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Tuesday, revealed that the company has more than 1.5 billion litres of petrol in stock, that could last for at least 30 days.
Soneye explained that what caused the fuel scarcity which has lasted for some days now crisis, was a three-day disruption in distribution experienced by the company due to logistical issues, which he said has been resolved. “However, as you know, overcoming such disruptions typically requires double the amount of time to return to normal operations,” he stated.
He regretted that some people have taken advantage of the situation to make profits at the expense of the masses who are bearing the brunt of the sudden hike in the price of petrol.
“Thankfully, product scarcity has been minimal lately, but these folks might be exploiting the situation for unwarranted gain.
“The lines will be cleared between today and tomorrow,” Soneye assured.
Also, in a statement released on Tuesday, MEMAN empathised with Nigerians facing the challenge of fuel scarcity in the last few days. The group said its top priority is to restore stability and ensure that fuel supplies reach all depots and retail outlets across Nigeria promptly.
MEMAN said its members are currently loading products from vessels in Apapa and other locations for onward distribution to various retail outlets across the country.
Part of the statement reads: “While the current situation has been challenging, we want to reassure the public that there is an adequate supply of PMS available. Our members in Apapa and other locations in Lagos are taking product from 8 vessels this week with over 300 million litres of PMS, well above our normal levels.
“We are actively coordinating with our member companies through swaps and other supply arrangements to ensure member stations remain stocked. Our depots will extend their loading times to ensure we load out as much as we can including tomorrow the 1st of May 2024.
“Our partners in NARTO & PTD have assured us of their support in ensuring the product gets to the retail outlets safely and quickly. We also will extend the opening times of selected retail outlets to ensure we can service our customers as long and as safely as possible.”
It added that Independent marketers (depots & stations) are being allocated additional PMS to increase supply and alleviate the situation.
“We expect the situation to improve in the coming days as supply chains adjust and stabilize,” MEMAN assured.\
Prime Business Africa had earlier reported that fuel queues worsened on Monday in Lagos, Abuja, Ogun and other parts of the country as many residents besieged petrol stations with vehicles and jerrycans to buy the product. While a few petrol stations were open in Lagos selling between N800 and N950, black market operators seized the opportunity to make brisk business, selling between N1,000 and N1,500 depending on the location.
This ugly situation led to an increase in transport fares to different locations as only a few motorists, who struggled to get petrol ply the roads, leading to crowded bus stops as commuters spent hours waiting to board vehicles to their destinations both in the morning and evening.
A motorist, Mr Emeka Ogbonna, who ply the Lekki-Ajah axis said he spent seven hours on Monday in a filling station before he could get petrol to enable him to work. He said the incident has made them increase transport fares.
READ ALSO: Why Petrol Queues Returned To Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt Filing Stations
A tricycle operator operating around Ilasamaja, Lagos lamented that because he couldn’t get petrol at a filling station on Monday, he was forced to buy from black market retailers at N1,500 per litre.
The tricycle operator, who didn’t want to be named, accused some petrol stations of deliberately hoarding the product with the hope that the scarcity would linger so that they could sell at exorbitant prices. “I bought some litres of fuel from black market people at N1,500 a litre which I used to work because I could not buy from a filling station. I am going home now to reserve some fuel I will use to work tomorrow morning before I look for another one,” he told this reporter on Monday night.
The lingering scarcity also led to controversy in some places. A video shared online showed two men engaging in a serious fight, exchanging heavy punches at a petrol station as they struggled in long queues to buy petrol.
With the assurances from NNPCL and petrol marketers, Nigerians hope to heave a sigh of relief when the long queues and scarcity finally end across the country.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
