Oil Marketer Warns of Looming Fuel Scarcity

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

An oil marketer, Mr Abubakar Maigandi, has warned that premium motor spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, may again become a scarce commodity in Nigeria because the country has not imported the product for a while.

Mr Maigandi, who is the vice president of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), said this to The Nation over the weekend.

The price of petrol at the retail stations surged to N488 per litre in Lagos and over N500 per litre in other parts of the country after President Bola Tinubu declared on May 29, 2023, that “fuel subsidy is gone” because it was draining the nation’s resources.

Speaking with The Nation, the oil marketer said though the low demand for fuel has reduced in the past week because of the low purchasing power of consumers, the product may not be available in the coming weeks unless marketers bring in petrol from abroad, urging importers to hasten the supply, noting that there has been no fresh stocking since the removal of subsidy.

Mr Maigandi said vessels of petrol might arrive in July but warned the suppliers not to allow their stock to dry up at any time.

“Nobody has imported petrol since the removal of subsidy; even NNPC did not import.

“We are all using the old stock. But I know probably this month, there will be new stock. If not, it may create scarcity.

“The government should not allow the fuel to get scarce. They should ensure they bring new stock. That is what we are expecting,” the IPMAN executive member said.

He also said due to the low demand for petrol, private depots have cut the price of the product to N495 per litre from N502 per litre.

The businessman said private depots are “reducing the price compared to last week. They are selling at the rate of N495 to N496/ litre. You know it reached N502 to N503/litre.

“In Lagos, most of the depots in Lagos that is what they are selling. NNPC is maintaining its old rate of N479.6/litre. Sales are low because people, especially the civil servants, are complaining there is no money.”