‘We’re fixing the situation’ — NNPC says petrol scarcity caused by discharging issue

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited says a hitch in the discharge operations of a couple of vessels has disrupted petrol supply.

On Friday, there were reports of petrol scarcity in some parts of Lagos and Abuja.

In a statement on Saturday, Olufemi Soneye, NNPC chief corporate communications officer, said NNPC is working with stakeholders to fix the challenge with petrol supply and distribution.

“The NNPC Ltd. wishes to state that the tightness in fuel supply and distribution witnessed in some parts of Lagos and the FCT is as a result of a hitch in the discharge operations of a couple of vessels,” Soneye said.

“The Company further states that it is working round the clock with all stakeholders to resolve the situation and restore normalcy in the operations.”

The petrol scarcity occurred after a dispute between Dangote Petroleum Refinery and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) over the supply of crude oil and the importation of petrol.

On July 18, Farouk Ahmed, chief executive officer of NMDPRA, said local refineries, including the Dangote refinery, were producing inferior products compared to the ones imported into the country.

Ahmed also said Dangote requested all importation of petroleum products — especially automotive gas oil (AGO) or jet kero — be suspended or stopped, and all oil marketers be directed to his refinery.

He said the demand is not good for Nigeria in terms of energy security and also not good for markets because of monopoly.

Aliko Dangote, CEO of Dangote Group, denied Ahmed’s claims.