fuel Fuel scarcity Fuel scarcity Filling stations shut for lack of fuel
AS the fuel scarcity grew worse yesterday, more
filling stations shut down to customers, giving
room for illegal sale of Premium Motor Spirit
(PMS).
As at yesterday, only few stations sold the
product, while many others shut down with
motorists waiting for a glimpse of hope of ever
getting the product.
When The Guardian visited Apapa yesterday,
petrol tankers waiting to load products flooded
the area where a large chunk of the country’s
fuel depots is situated.
Though the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation (NNPC) claimed to be supplying fuel
to major filling stations across the country, the
Executive Secretary, Major Marketers Association
of Nigeria (MOMAN), Thomas Olawore, said the
NNPC lacked the capacity to address the
national demand for petrol in the long term and
did not have the distribution network to drive
product penetration.
But the corporation insisted that it had stepped
up efforts to maintain stability in the supply and
distribution of petroleum products nationwide.
According to the Executive Secretary, Depot and
Petroleum Products Marketers Association
(DAPPMA), Olufemi Adewole, all its members
who own most of the products storage facilities
across the country are fast running out of stock
of products.
Adewole said that most marketers did not seem
to possess the financial muscle to undertake
further fuel importations, as they were yet to
receive subsidy arrears from the Federal
Government.
“But, it is one thing to load, and another thing for
it to be adequate. We are loading what NNPC is
giving us. As it stands now, almost all marketers
have run out of stock.
“Nobody has the means to import. No marketer
has received payment for products imported
since August last year.”
Although the president gave approval for the
payment of about N413 billion as part of the
subsidy arrears to marketers, Adewole said they
were yet to receive the money.
“The president said that the subsidy payment
has been approved, but the payment is yet to be
made. Not one marketer has received payment.
We are still waiting for the payment. If we got
that, it would help us do better than we are
doing at the moment,” he said.
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