Petrol scarcity: We’re collaborating with NNPC to improve distribution, says MOMAN

Abubakar Yunusa Abuja 

The Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) says it is working with the Nigeria National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited to improve the distribution of petrol across the country.

Clement Isong, chief executive officer of MOMAN, said this on Saturday in an interview with NAN in Lagos.

During the week, the current scarcity of petrol had resulted in long queues at filling stations in Lagos, Ogun, and other states as buyers spent hours waiting to buy the commodity.

Isong said the association had been holding daily meetings with the downstream management of NNPC on how to improve the supply of petrol.

According to him, the collaboration with NNPC will enhance the distribution of petroleum products in the country.

“We are doing depot to depot check-in and check-out to enhance efficiency, and also having logistic supply meetings with NNPCL,” Isong said.

“There is also collaboration among our members to cushion supply to various MOMAN’s stations.

“We arranged it in a way that any MOMAN member who does not have product can pick from fellow members’ depot to minimise supply gaps.”

Isong also said the effort was to improve the supply of petrol at filling stations across the country.

“NNPCL had an operational meeting with MOMAN to ensure that products are effectively distributed across the country,” he said.

“The logistics meeting was to ensure adequate distribution of products to stations across the country.”

Isong further said MOMAN members would be working late and during the weekend to bridge product supply gaps, adding that the association had been pushing out more products than it normally did.

He noted that the scarcity was as a result of delay experienced at the point of receiving products from offshore to onshore at the port.

However, Isong assured the logistics challenge had been resolved and members were currently trucking out products.

Meanwhile, two weeks ago, stakeholders under the aegis of Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), called for a quick intervention by the federal government

Winifred Akpani, DAPPMAN’s chairman, said access to forex (FX) through the official market would enhance their capacity, facilitate seamless supply of petrol, and birth a regime of sustainability in terms of storage, distribution and supply across the nation.

“DAPPMAN hereby calls on the government to establish a level playing field in the sector by giving petroleum marketers access to forex at the CBN exchange rate for their operations,” Akpani had said.

She added that accessing FX at the official rate would boost fuel supply across the country.