• Independent Marketers Raise Concerns Over Pricing as 300 Trucks Mobilized for Petrol Lifting
• Marketers Push for Direct Access Amid NNPC’s Control
Marketers have called for direct access to petrol from the Dangote refinery, criticizing the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) for its tight control over the market.
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) argues that the market should be open to all participants, in line with the NNPC’s earlier commitment to a willing-buyer, willing-seller framework.
The NNPC had announced last Saturday that it would not be the exclusive off-taker of products from the Dangote refinery, allowing the refinery to sell its petrol to other marketers.
However, this position shifted a week later when the Federal Government declared that the NNPC would be the sole buyer of petrol from the refinery.
At a press briefing in Abuja on Friday, Finance Minister Wale Edun, represented by Dr. Zacceus Adedeji, the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, revealed that the Dangote refinery would start distributing petrol to marketers on Sunday, September 15, 2024. He stated,
“I am glad to announce that all agreements have been put in place, and the loading of the first batch of PMS will commence on Sunday. From October 1, NNPC will supply crude oil to the Dangote refinery, to be paid in naira.
In return, Dangote refinery will supply PMS and diesel to the domestic market, also paid in naira. For now, PMS will only be sold to NNPC, which will then distribute it to various marketers.”
Chinedu Ukadike, the National Publicity Secretary of IPMAN, responded to the announcement by asserting, “The market should be liberalized. It should be open for all in line with the willing-buyer and willing-seller comments made by the NNPC. We are also looking at how to build our logistics and establish our pricing.”
Billy Gillis-Harry, National President of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Association of Nigeria, expressed concerns about the potential for creating a new monopoly in the domestic market.
He remarked, “We don’t know the price of the petrol yet, and there has been a lack of transparency. We’re transitioning from an NNPC monopoly on imports to potentially having one domestically, which could be detrimental to the industry.”
On Saturday, the NNPC mobilized 300 trucks to the Dangote refinery in preparation for the petrol loading, as confirmed by NNPC spokesperson Olufemi Soneye.
He stated, “NNPC Ltd trucks are arriving at the Dangote refinery for the scheduled petrol loading on Sunday. By the end of today, at least 300 trucks will be stationed at the refinery’s fuel loading gantry.”
Independent marketers noted that the price of petrol from the Dangote refinery had not yet been disclosed. The National Operations Controller of IPMAN, Mustapha Zarma, said, “Independent marketers have not been offered a direct purchase price by Dangote yet. For now, we will source the product through NNPC, but we hope to buy directly from Dangote in the near future.”
Sources indicate that the Dangote refinery will sell petrol to the NNPC at approximately N766 per litre. A senior aide to President Bola Tinubu confirmed this price. Zarma noted that with additional costs, the retail price could be around N790 in Lagos and N820 in northern regions.
Gillis-Harry commented on the price, saying, “If we can buy petrol at N766, it is cheaper compared to the NNPC’s current rate of N870 per litre. We will work out the retail price based on additional costs and margins. We are ready to support Dangote, but communication from their end has been lacking.”
