The Nigerian Independent Petroleum Company (NIPCO) has commended the efforts of Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGAM) at deepening usage of gas as preferred cooking fuel amongst the populace.
The NIPCO Managing Director, Mr Sanjay Teotia, said on Monday in Lagos that the sensitisation programme was very apt.
Teotia, who spoke at the conferment of NALPGAM Special Award on the company, said that it served as a veritable avenue of increasing awareness of LPG usage as cooking energy of choice in the country.
The managing director said in a statement that this was important taking due consideration of the nation’s abundance of the energy resources.
He said NIPCO had been consistent in supporting awareness programme in the sector to raise stakeholders’ awareness and improved safety consciousness across the country through plethora of events.
This, he said, included the printing of LPG safety pamphlets and donation of gas accessories.
“The company’s efforts in the sector are aimed at improving the gas value chain by providing avenue for storage and dispense to bottling plants owners and other ancillary operators in the LPG market.
“In the course of NIPCO’s intervention, the transport infrastructure and delivery system were improved upon with scores of LPG delivery trucks to bottling plants and over 60 skids inaugurated by the company across the country.
“Our plant with a combined capacity of over 10,000mt has served as veritable channel for storage of the product alone.
“It has also served as distribution to gas markets plants across the nation and servicing of over 25 LPG off takers approved by the Nigeria LNG Ltd,” he said.
Teotia said NIPCO’s storage and distribution system had always been within the context of the Annual Contract Quantity (ACQ) approved by the Nigeria LNG which had been meticulously followed to the delight of all stakeholders.
“It is pertinent to mention that NLNG had been fair and just to all in the distribution of the product under the ACQ to all buyers which had partly contributed to the growth in the usage and utilisation of the clean and smoke free cooking fuel.
“NLNG has remained a reasonable and consistent company in honouring agreement with all buyers in line with its ACQ.
“This is a feat that we are delighted upon as one of the key operators in the LPG sub-sector of the hydrocarbon industry,” he said.
Teotia said the intervention of NLNG in the domestic LPG market since 2007 had been commendable.
He said this was with regularity of supplies with majority of the organisation off takers taking their volumes through the PPMC jetties with its attendant cheaper logistic cost of receipt.
The NIPCO chief said the award for the company was well appreciated, taking into consideration the reasons adduced for the recognition among the plethora of stakeholders in the sector.
According to him, NIPCO in the letter of award, was adjudged to have played exemplary roles in deepening of LPG utilisation and consumption in Nigeria in the areas of LPG availability, distribution, accessibility and affordability.
“The National President and members of the Governing Council of the association noted that since the entry of the company in 2009, the face of the business had changed positively with more avenue to source the product for the benefit of end-user,” he said.
Teotia also recalled the presentation of the best LPG marketing company of the year to the company in 2017.
He said this was a feat that had emboldened the organisation to render selfless services to stakeholders in the sector in particular and the industry in general.
