*Says FG doesn’t have to adjust price
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has again assured Nigerians that it has sufficient stock of premium motor spirit (PMS) or petrol for distribution across the country even scarcity continues to bite harder especially in Lagos and Abuja with its attendant long queues, heavy traffic and disruption of economic activities.
The NNPC said that it has over 1.7billion litres of PMS both on marine and on the Land and does not have any plan to adjust the regulated pump price of the product at filling stations.
The Group Managing Director/CEO of NNPC Limited, Malam Mele Kyari, gave the assurance while addressing reporters at the NNPC Towers in a joint press briefing with Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN) and Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) on Wednesday in Abuja.
Kyari lamented that the current fuel queues at the filling station is as a result of panic paying. He called on Nigeria to desist from panic buying and buy what they need per day, adding that he is working assiduously with partners to ensure the product reaches every part of the country.
He said: “NNPC is further intensifying efforts to resolve distribution hitches being experienced in some parts of the country due to logistics issues. We have engaged depot operators to load product round the clock to accelerate the restoration of normal distribution.
“We have capacity now to load from all depots. We are currently running 24 hours loading from all our depots and we believe this will close the gap created by panic buying.
“We hope this will bring normalcy to the system soon.”
The NNPC chief also disclosed that it has engaged the services of government security agencies to ensure that all products loaded get to the right destinations and affirmed that sanction will be meted to any operator selling above the stipulated pump price.
“We sincerely apologize to our people and urge Nigerians to continue to be patient as we strive to return the situation to normalcy.
“As the supplier of last resort, NNPC has continued to sustain adequate petroleum products supply and distribution to the nation despite challenges associated with the unending waves of pipeline vandalism, product theft and cross-border smuggling of PMS.
“In line with the existing laws of the land, NNPC Limited is deeply committed to ensuring energy security for the country,” the NNPC GMD/CEO said.
