A destroyed refinery By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited( NNPCL) says it has destroyed 134 illegal refineries in the last few weeks. Also, the company said 63 illegal pipeline connections were uncovered during the the weeks . The corporation, In a visual report, stated that at about 2 am on Sunday, a joint team of security agents discovered a large wooden boat illicitly loading stolen crude oil from Barge AGS01 within the OML 18 operating area, noted intelligence report a large wooden wooden boat was caught receiving crude oil from the barge. According to the state-owned oil firm, while the barge was towed away with a tugboat in custody, five speedboats used in towing the large wooden boat to the illegal loading site were also detained and the particulars of the tugboats and barge used for the operation were reportedly seized for further investigation. It further said that two large boats, which involve
By Akinola Ajibade
Indications emerged that businesses and individuals in Rivers state, especially Port Harcourt are going to feel the weight of the lingering fuel scarcity before the close of works tomorrow, Friday, as outlets are running out of the products.
The News Mirror investigation reveals that retailers are still dispensing fuel albeit gradually in the Garden City and that they may run out of Petroleum Premium Spirit (PMS) soon, unless drastic efforts are made by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company ( NNPC) Limited and Petroleum Products Marketing Company ( PPMC) to supply them fuel.
Confirming the development, the President,
Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria( PETROAN), Mr Billy Gills told the News Mirror that fuel is still much available in Port Harcourt and that outlets would run our of stock latest this Friday.
Gills, who said that he was on tour of Port Harcourt at the time of speaking with the medium, stressed that fuel marketers are almost run of stock in the Rivers state capital.
He said: " Marketers are still selling fuel in Port Harcourt. They are mostly members of PETROAN since they buy fuel from PPMC. In Port Harcourt today, one can drive to any to any detail outlets and buy petrol. 38 per cent of the filling stations are having fuel, which they get from PPMC, while the remaining 62 per cent of marketers get fuel from other sources."
Continuing further, Gills said that fuel is being dispensed at N165 per litre by his members, since they got supplies from PPMC
He said that those marketers who get fuel from PPMC have been instructed not to sell fuel beyond the regulated price of N165 per litre.
"PETROAN is happy that those marketers or better puts retailers are law abiding, as they are not flouting the rules and regulations of the government. They are not mostly driven by profits, as their goal is to meet the expectations of the customers" Gills added.
He, however, said that depots owners are buying fuel at a much higher prices, a development, which made them to dispense the product above the official price of N165.
" Marketers, Gills said, who are getting fuel from secondary sources, not PPMC, are selling beyond N165. May be N167 to N170. Some are even selling fuel to motorists above N170 since they pay more charges in the course of moving fuel to their base. They pay for transportation among others..
Apparently supporting their decision to dispense at prices that are beyond govt regulated ones, Gills said that anybody, who buy fuel at a higher price would automatically sell it accordingly.
He said that members of PETROAN own some outlets in Lagos, Abuja and other states, stating that they are selling fuel at N165 per litre.
On solution to fuel scarcity, he said that the Federal Government through NNPC and its subsidiary( NNPC) are working to normalise supply of fuel nationwide.
" I cannot say exactly the date, when fuel would be maximally available in the country. All I can say is that efforts are on going on the matter" he said.
Comments
Post a Comment