The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has reported that its members are facing a shortage of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, amid a nationwide scarcity of the product.
IPMAN, which comprises over 3,000 members and controls a significant portion of the country’s filling stations, has been impacted by this supply issue.
Engr. Shina Amoo, Chairman of IPMAN’s Ore Depot, stated during a Tuesday appearance on Channels Television’s *Morning Brief*, that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the sole importer of petroleum products, has not provided sufficient supplies to meet the needs of its members over the past three years.
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He said, “There is no supply anywhere. For now, the only supply available is not well distributed. We have been making noise about the distribution pattern long ago. We had a type of arrangement before now, where we used to enjoy 70/30 supply based on our strength. If you go to areas like villages, and urban areas, you will see lots of independent marketers where you would not find any major or semi-major marketers.
“But now we can’t even talk of IPMAN when it comes to supply. We are not even being considered when it comes to supply. Go around, if you see 50 petrol stations, and you take a random sample, you will discover that only between three to eight would be selling products. And these products we are selling, we are getting them at premium prices. Virtually all the depots we buy from sell to us at prices they want to sell from the neighbourhood of between ₦750 to ₦850.
“All the private depots have been selling to us at the prices they want for years now instead of getting products at ₦560 from NNPC. None of us have been able to get products from NNPC for over 2-3 years. Instead of getting from NNPC directly, when you pay your draft today, you will end up picking your product between three to five months later. So time would have eroded the profit by the time you get your product.
“So we now prefer to line up at any private depots. I don’t want to mention their names. They sell products to independent marketers at premium of like ₦850, ₦800, ₦870 per litre.
“Before now, when you make payment to the NNPC- like in the Ore depot, we make payment to NNPC, and we have to wait for a week before loading. But today, when you make payments, there will be long procedures, and bureaucracy. Before you now access the products takes about four months. But now, we go to depots close to us in Delta State to source for products.
“After making payment for the product maybe at ₦800 per litre, you will pay for transportation of about ₦22 per litre to land at Akure. That is what we are facing right now.
“NNPC supplies the depots. I mentioned something earlier about the distribution pattern. The year NNPC abandoned the distribution pattern was when they stopped being sincere. They stopped supplying IPMAN, and would rather supply DAPPMAN, MEMAN. And the volume they give us cannot handle IPMAN’s activities.”
He attributed the main issue to fuel subsidies and NNPCL’s role as the sole importer.
Amoo also discussed the increase in product prices at depots following the removal of subsidies. He suggested that if corruption were eliminated from the downstream sector, it would lead to a decrease in product prices.
