Fuel scarcity hits again as depots dry up

Fuel scarcity has resurfaced across Nigeria’s commercial capital as marketers claimed that the depots now have limited supply.

Petrol marketers told BusinessDay on Thursday that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, which has returned as the sole importer of the product, was rationing supply to depots.

Chinedu Uzordike, a member of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), who confirmed the development, told BusinessDay in a telephone interview that most independent stations were unable to secure products from the depots.

Uzordike noted that with NNPC Retails as the sole importer of petrol into the country, marketers across the country were relying on the government-owned oil company for supplies.

“We have been finding it very difficult to pick products from NNPC in the past two days and that is why you are seeing the skeletal scarcity. It is not major yet. The important point here is that despite the deregulation, NNPC is still the sole importer of PMS and no other depot is importing.

“Some of the portals owned by NNPC have shut down and are no longer issuing authority to lift to marketers in some of their portals.

Efforts to get Olufemi Soneye, chief corporate communications officer at NNPC proved abortive.