The Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGAM) has cautioned Nigerians against panic buying of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), also known as cooking gas, as a result of the force majeure declared by Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG).
Oladapo Olatunbosun, president of NALPGAM, made the appeal in a statement against the backdrop of NLNG’s declaration of force majeure on its supplies following reduced supplies from its upstream gas suppliers due to flooding.
He said that cooking gas consumers should not panic about a possible scarcity of the product as a result of the force majeure.
“Based on information reaching the association; NLNG has not shut down its production facility in Bonny as rumoured,” he said.
He confirmed that NLNG on October 20, 2022, had shipped a cargo of LPG for the domestic market.
According to Oladapo, the dedicated vessel for shipment of LPG from the NLNG Plant in Bonny, “Alfred Temile”, arrived in Lagos on Thursday to discharge the product.
He said, “The public should know that the supply of LPG from NLNG has not stopped. “We should not give opportunity for further price hike due to speculated shortage of the product. We are already in hard times with the Russian/Ukraine war causing upset in the markets and the scarcity.”
NALPGAM’s president further said that NLNG has assured the Association that it will keep producing LPG based on the feed-gas it receives from its gas suppliers, adding that production was expected to pick up after the flood recedes.
However, Oladapo cautioned middlemen in the value chain not to take advantage of the hysteria in the market as a result of the flood which has also hampered the distribution of production across the nation.
In addition, NALPGAM’s boss called for urgent intervention by critical stakeholders to grow the industry and for more investment to meet demand and crash the price.
Andy Odeh, general manager, external relations and sustainable development NLNG, in a statement, urged Nigerians not to rush to fill their gas cylinders as there is enough quantity of LPG to satisfy the market.
Read also: Explainer: Will NLNG force majeure affect cooking gas?
Odeh said that the flooding or force majeure declared has no impact on LPG availability.
According to him, the NLNG account for 40 percent supply of gas in the domestic market and in recent times has been the sole supplier for the domestic market.
He further explained that the company’s plant was in operation at a limited capacity, due to reduced gas supply from some of its upstream gas suppliers.
“None of NLNG’s assets on Bonny Island or in any of its host communities are impacted by the flood,” he said.
“The Force Majeure is as a consequence of a similar notice by upstream gas suppliers due to the impact of flooding in their production facilities.”
According to Odeh, NLNG continues to monitor the situation with upstream gas suppliers and is evaluating the impact of the flood on its business.
He further assured that the firm is working with all critical stakeholders to mitigate the impact on product deliveries.
