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The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria has threatened to stop operations nationwide following the high cost of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, sold to IPMAN members by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.
IPMAN revealed on Thursday that the cost of petrol from the Dangote Petroleum Refinery to NNPC was about N898/litre, but noted that NNPC was selling the same product to independent marketers at N1,010/litre in Lagos.
The association, which controls over 70 per cent of filling stations nationwide, kicked against this and threatened to down tools, as it also demanded a refund from NNPC for earlier petrol supply payments made by its members.
This development may further worsen the petrol scarcity and queues in many parts of the country
Meanwhile, it was also gathered on Thursday that members of the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria were still loading subsidised petrol from Dangote refinery, based on earlier arrangements with the NNPCL.
The National Publicity Secretary of IPMAN, Chinedu Ukadike, said the association might be forced to take action if the challenge between IPMAN and NNPC was not resolved immediately.
This development followed an earlier revelation by IPMAN national president, Abubakar Maigandi, that NNPC was asking independent marketers to buy petroleum products from its depot at N1,010/litre in Lagos State.
Maigandi, who spoke during a live television interview on Thursday, argued that the price was higher than what NNPC paid for the product from the Dangote refinery.
He also noted that independent marketers’ funds had been held by the national oil company for about three months.
According to him, NNPC purchased the product from the refinery at N898/litre but is asking marketers to buy it at N1,010/litre in Lagos; N1,045 in Calabar; N1,050 in Port Harcourt; and N1,040 in Warri.
“Our major challenge now is that independent marketers have an outstanding debt from the NNPC and the company collected products through Dangote at a lower rate, which is not up to N900, but they are telling us now to buy this product from them at the price of N1,010/litre in Lagos; N1,045 in Calabar; N1,050 in Port-Harcourt; and N1,040 in Warri”, Maigandi stated.
He also pointed out that the association’s funds with NNPC had reached N15bn, stressing that marketers were eager to be fully involved in the petrol business and its components following the full deregulation of the sector.
