Oil marketers move to shut down 30,000 filling stations over N200 billion debt, 300m litres arrive

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) said on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, that it would shut down the 30,000 stations owned by IPMAN members across Nigeria if the Nigerian government fails to pay the N200 billion debt it owes oil dealers.

Specifically, IPMAN said the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has refused to clear the debt, which has continued accumulating since 2022.

IPMAN controls 30,000 filling stations across Nigeria

The association disclosed in a communique issued in Abuja by the IPMAN Depot Chairmen Forum, Yahaya Alhassan, over the non-payment of marketers’ bridging claims.

IPMAN members control over 30,000 filling stations spread across Nigeria.

Bridging claims are payments made by the government to oil firms to transport petroleum products loaded from depots to various states in the country.

Alhassan said the consequences of NMDPRA's failure to clear the debt would be terrible, as every filling station owned by IPMAN members would be shut down.

Punch reports that the official stated that a stakeholders meeting convened on February 20, 2024, with the Minister of Stae for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, and the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, the Chief Executive of NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, was asked by the Lokpobiri to clear the entire debt in 40 days.

IPMAN blames NNPC for petrol scarcity

Leadership reports that the association noted the 40-day time lapse given to the agency to clear the debt and that it is shameful to say that only N13 billion has been paid out of the N200 billion.

On the current petrol scarcity across Nigeria, Alhassan said the issue was due to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) not supplying petrol to dealers.

IPMAN said that the scarcity is triggered by NNPC, not by IPMAN or its members. According to the association, contrary to claims of product hoarding by IPMAN members, NNPC remains the sole importer of PMS and the only cause of the scarcity in Nigeria.

It stated that NNPC was supplying petrol to private depots, adding that these depots increased the cost of the product to as high as N850 per litre, leading to higher prices at the pumps.

NNPC assures Nigerians as 300 million litres arrive

On Monday, April 29, 2024, the NNPC assured Nigerians that the ongoing scarcity would be cleared by Wednesday, May 1, 2024, spokesman for NNPC, Olufemi Soneye, said.

The marketers and NNPC had said that the current scarcity was caused by supply and logistics issues across the country.

Meanwhile, the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN) says its members have begun loading over 300 million litres of petrol this week.

The association disclosed this on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, saying that its members in Apapa and other locations in Lagos are taking products from eight vessels this week with over 300 million litres of PMS, TheCable reports.

MEMAN said it is actively coordinating with its member companies via swaps and other supply arrangements to ensure member stations remain stocked.