- Black market retailers hike prices to N1, 400 per litre as shortage spread
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria has raised concerns over the shortage of Premium Motor Spirit also known as petrol, affecting its members across the country amidst widespread scarcity.
The umbrella body, which boasts over 3,000 members and controls a significant share of Nigeria’s filling stations, also accused the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited of failing to supply adequate products to its members.
The Chairman of IPMAN, Ore Depot, Shina Amoo, claimed that the NNPCL, as the sole importer of petroleum products, has not provided sufficient supplies to IPMAN for the past three years, leading to a dire situation for its members.
“There is no supply anywhere. The available supply is poorly distributed. We have been raising concerns about this for a long time. We previously had an arrangement where we enjoyed a 70/30 supply ratio based on our capacity.
“Independent marketers are spread across villages and urban areas, yet we are not being considered in the supply chain,” Amoo lamented during his appearance on a live television programme on Tuesday.
The NNPCL had through its Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, stated that the oil firm was working hard to tackle the fuel supply challenges, stressing that the queues should clear by mid-week.
However, Amoo highlighted the bureaucratic delays faced by IPMAN members when dealing with NNPCL, saying, “Previously, after payment, it took a week to load products. Now, the process drags on for three to five months. This has made many of us turn to private depots, even though they charge premium prices.”
He expressed frustration over the current distribution pattern, accusing NNPCL of sidelining IPMAN in favour of other groups such as DAPPMAN and MEMAN.
“NNPCL abandoned the distribution pattern and stopped being sincere. They no longer supply IPMAN but prefer to supply others. The volume they provide is insufficient for our needs,” Amoo stated.
He also addressed the impact of the removal of fuel subsidies, arguing that corruption within the downstream sector is responsible for the skyrocketing prices.
Amoo believes that eliminating corruption would lead to a significant drop in product prices.
Black market retailers hike prices to N1, 400 per litre as scarcity spreads
Meanwhile, the average price of a litre of petrol has reached N1000 at some filling stations and black markets in Lagos as the scarcity spreads to various parts of Nigeria.
In Isolo, Ejigbo, Igando-Ikotun, Bariga and Ojodu local development areas in Lagos, filling stations sold between N830 and N900 per litre.
Black market retailers leveraged the opportunity to hike their prices to N1, 200/l to N1, 400/l.
“Here we go again, struggling to buy a litre of petrol at N1, 200 without any clear explanation from the government or the Nigerian National Petroleum Company,” said Cynthia Odume, a lawyer.
In Abuja, petrol stations sold between N617/l and N980/l.
In Kubwa, a litre of petrol was sold between N670/l and N690/l.
However, black marketers sold a 10-litre gallon of petrol at N10, 000.
“I spent over an hour here to buy petrol. We have been facing petrol scarcity for three years now, yet the government cannot explain why this situation has persisted,” Joe Amali, a civil servant, lamented.
“We are paying more for less,” he added.
Many retail stations of the NNPC remained locked, even though Mele Kyari, group chief executive officer of the company, recently announced that the company has reached a new peak in crude oil production, higher than in the last three years.
Amid the ongoing fuel scarcity across Nigeria, the latest report from the National Bureau of Statistics has revealed a significant rise in the average retail price of petrol, which reached N770.54 per litre in July 2024.
The NBS’s PMS Price Watch report highlighted a sharp 28.35 percent increase in petrol prices compared to last year when the average price stood at N600.35/l. The report also noted a 2.72 percent rise from June 2024’s average cost of N750.17/l.
Regional disparities were also evident in the NBS data, with northern states experiencing the highest increases in petrol prices.
Katsina State recorded the steepest average retail price at N950.00/l, followed by Jigawa at N903.08/l and Benue at N846.95/l.
In contrast, Kwara, Edo, and Akwa Ibom States had the lowest prices, at N650.00/l, N669.75/l, and N673.75/l, respectively.
The report further indicated that the North West zone had the highest average retail price of N820.10/l, while the South-South zone had the lowest at N678.30/l.
The surge in petrol prices has exacerbated the already dire fuel scarcity situation, particularly in Lagos and Abuja, where long queues at filling stations have become a common sight.
Despite assurances from the NNPC that efforts are being made to restore normalcy, the situation has deteriorated.
