From Punch
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has agreed to sell Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) to members of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria at N995 per litre.
This came after the Department of State Services got involved in the dispute between the two groups.
According to Hammed Fashola, the National Vice President of IPMAN, the DSS’s intervention resolved numerous issues that faced marketers.
Fashola further stated that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority agreed to settle the association’s outstanding N10 billion debt in exchange for resolving concerns regarding the direct purchase of gasoline from the Dangote refinery through their intervention.
“We really appreciate their intervention. They are doing their job. Anywhere they have seen that there may be a crisis, it is their duty to intervene. And their intervention brokered peace and understanding between the parties, and everybody agreed to work together,” Fashola stated.
Asked to disclose how much the NNPC will sell PMS to IPMAN, he replied, “For now, tentatively, I think they are offering us N995 per litre.”
Fashola gave an assurance that IPMAN members would no longer sell at prices significantly higher than those of major marketers with the N995 ex-depot price, but distance is another factor that contributes to expensive PMS.
“Our members sell at N1,200 or so and this depends on the location. I think with the N995, there will be a little reduction. Don’t forget that if you transport a product from Lagos to a far distance, you will pay for transportation and other charges.
“We want to work on that because we want to have a common ground. When we sit down and look at the price analysis offered to us, and factor in all our expenses, we want to have a uniform price as much as possible.
“So, I will not be able to tell you the exact price now, but we are working on it, especially in the Lagos axis and other zones. We will look at the transportation cost and all that. At the end of the day, we will fix the price for ourselves,” he stated.
The IPMAN leader emphasised that IPMAN is interested in prices that would be competitive, saying the price disparity has been a disadvantage to independent marketers.
“The price disparity has been a disadvantage between us and the NNPC Retail and major marketers. So, we are trying to look at how to close that gap so that we come back fully into the business. The lack of direct supply has been our problem, and now that we are solving that problem, I don’t think that disparity will be there again,” he stressed.
Fashola explained that the price differential is the reason for the queues in some filling stations in the cities.
“The queues you see are because of that difference in prices, that’s why people are saying there are queues. There are no queues; it is the price disparity that is causing the queues. So, if there is not much difference, we have filling stations everywhere; just drive in, buy fuel, and go. But that so much difference in the price is creating that scenario of queues,” he narrated.
Published by Ejoh Caleb
