The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has once again ascribed the continued severe gasoline shortage to “distribution challenges” as it approaches the sixth week.
The third gasoline shortage of 2024 started in early July, and NNPC blames it on logistical difficulties in moving the fuel from mother vessel to daughter vessels.
The statement from the company stated: “The NNPC Ltd wishes to state that the recent thunderstorm caused disruptions in the ship-to-ship (STS) transfer of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as gasoline, between Mother Vessels and Daughter Vessels, which resulted in fuel queues in the FCT and some parts of the country.
The unfavorable weather has also interfered with truck load-outs, berthing at jetties, and product transit to filling stations, disrupting the logistics of station supply.
“The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) regulations and the flammability of petroleum products make it impossible to load gasoline during rainstorms and lightning,” the NNPC Ltd. further claims.
However, the national oil corporation expressed its regret for the situation in a two-paragraph statement on Sunday, given that the scarcity is not showing any signs of getting better.
“The NNPC Ltd regrets the tightness in fuel supply witnessed in some parts of Lagos and the FCT, which is as a result of distribution challenges,” stated Mr. Olufemi Soneye, Chief Corporate Communications Officer of NNPC Limited.
“The Company additionally advises drivers to avoid making rash purchases as it is collaborating with pertinent parties around-the-clock to get things back to normal.”
Yesterday, inspections of the Abuja Central Area revealed that huge lines were still present at the few stations that were available to the public.
The situation outside the city center remained terrible, with independent marketers’ stores upping their pump prices to N950 per litre from N720 per litre prior to the crisis starting more than a month ago.
Vanguard was informed by Chief Chinedu Ukadike, Public Relations Officer of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) that the marketers had not received the product in a while.
Ukadike clarified that there might be a connection between it and the Dangote Refinery’s upcoming delivery of premium motor spirit, or PMS.
He saw that marketers were treading carefully so they wouldn’t lose money if the refinery’s supply of gasoline caused a collapse in price.
He declared, “Remember that we still rely on product imports. Supply has become epileptic again, and we have not received an adequate supply in recent times.” The effects of any supply constraint, logistical issue, or procrastination are nearly instantaneous.
“I also think that those supplying NNPC are hesitant to bring in products since Dangote announced its intention to supply gasoline because they don’t want to suffer the losses they did when Dangote entered the market and slashed the price of AGO (Automated Gas Oil, popularly known as diesel).”
These are market indexes, thus one must use caution to avoid taking on an excessive debt. Although the firm hasn’t given us any merchandise, the majority of the products that we as independent marketers use come from NNPC Retails. They provide goods to owners of tank farms.
